Where She Belongs
by Reese M
Summary: Capt. Janeway & the Voyager crew discover two derelict ships in space. One unknown; one Borg. The ships give the crew some major mysteries to solve, one of which being why the only survivor is a Borg baby with some pretty special story of her own. J7 R
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: I do not own Star Trek Voyager or it's characters I simply love the show and enjoy putting my own spin on things. This is a repost of a story I'd posted years ago under the ResseM pen name. Because it's the first in a series of stories I'd taken it down to work out all the continuity issues, I hope I've managed that. I've also changed a few things up since my writing has, I hope, improved since my first posting.

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The eerie images of two lifeless ships filled the view screen of Voyager's bridge. The larger of the two ships had set off an automatic alert as soon as it had appeared on long-range sensors. It was a large sphere of twisted dark metal that sent shivers down the spins of the crew aboard any ship that came across it's path. Captain Kathryn Janeway ordered her helmsmen, Lieutenant Tom Paris, to carefully stay their course when the alert was sounded despite the fact that the Borg ship was directly in their path. As they approached the scene before them became more and more horrific. An unknown vessel and a Borg sphere drifted dark and lifeless in space. Both ships showed signs of weapons fire, both looked as if they'd taken heavy damage, but not the kind that would have left the ships in their current state, especially the Borg ship.

"Both ships appear to be running on auxiliary power." Tuvok reported from his position at the tactical station. His stoic, seemingly cold, Vulcan voice betrayed nothing of what the dark skinned man might have been thinking. It had been a long time since the crew of Voyager had come across anything Borg and most of the crew was feeling a mix of fear and intrigue as they glazed out at the wreck.

"No life signs from either one of them." Harry Kim added. Unlike Tuvok, Harry's mixed emotions lightly laced his voice.

"No further sign of Borg activity in the area." Tuvok continued.

From the command chair in the center of the bridge Captain Janeway listened to her officers give their reports. Her own thoughts already playing around with different scenarios as she did so. She relaxed just the smallest bit when Tuvok said there was no other activity in the area, but that didn't mean the situation couldn't change at a moments notice. "Stand down red alert and go to yellow, Mr. Tuvok." The fair skinned, alburn haired captain ordered. A million questions popped into Janeway's head as she looked out at the scene before her. Why was a single sphere out here so far from normal Borg space? To whom did the other ship belong? What the hell had happened that caused both ships to shut down? The unknown vessel didn't look like it could take on Voyager in a fight with it's torpedoes tied behind it's back let alone a Borg sphere, and yet here they both were, crippled and adrift. That sphere should have had at least five hundred drones, and Harry couldn't find a single life sign? The Captain's musing were cut short by a sudden voice of her comm. badge.

"Seven to the Captain."

It took a moment to clear her head of the questions dancing around her thoughts before Janeway replied to her Astrometrics Officer, "Go ahead, Seven."

Seven of Nine was a former Borg drone that Janeway had liberated from the Collective during the fourth year of Voyager's journey home through the Delta Quadrant. Seven, born Annika Hanson, had been assimilated when she was six years old so all she'd ever known was her life as a Borg. In her years aboard Voyager the young woman seemed to go through an entire life cycle as she learned to reengage with her individually and humanity. From a lost, terrified child, to a rebellious adolescent searching for who she was, to the brilliant young woman she was now, and through out it all Janeway had been a mentor to her. Then, suddenly, everything changed. Seven pulled away from Janeway's mentorship as she began having experiences that made her more and more grown up, only to reconnect with the other woman in a far more intimate way. "Captain," The blonde woman said over the comms. in her cool almost Vulcan like tone, "I am picking up a distress signal."

Janeway looked first at Tuvok who shook his head and then at Harry who did the same. There was no reason for her to distrust what Seven was telling her so Janeway didn't question the validly of the woman's report, but she did need it to be clarified. "We're not receiving anything up here, Seven."

There was no hint of emotion in Seven's voice. She knew the Captain trusted her so she had no issues with being questioned. Nor did she feel any real fear about what was happening. "You would not be Captain. I am receiving the message through my proximity transceiver."

Janeway blinked in surprise as she sat up in her chair, her hands gripping a little tighter to the arm rests. "Where is the signal coming from, Seven?"

"The Borg sphere." Came the reply.

"Scans report there is no activity on the Borg sphere, Captain. Minimal power, no life signs, no distress calls, no nothing." Harry said as he looked down at Janeway after rereading the scan outputs at his station.

"Apparently Ensign Kim, there is indeed something." Seven replied. If anyone had said it the comment would have seemed snarky, but that was just how Seven spoke. The crew had long since grown use to her seemingly superior way of speaking to others, though it wasn't nearly as bad as it use to be.

"How is it possible for Seven to be detecting a transmission from a ship with no operating systems but minimal life support?" Tuvok asked, his voice composed and calm. His scans all showed weapons, shields, commutations, and the transwrap drive were all disabled on the sphere.

"It is not from the ship it's self, Commander, but a weak signal from within." Seven replied as she listened to the conversation on the bridge from her station in Astrometrics.

Janeway leaned over the arm of her chair with her hand at her chin as she looked at her first office, Commander Chakotay, who sat to her right. Of course she was formulating her own plans but she always tried to get the input of her officers before following through on anything. "What do you think?"

"I think some how someone managed to take out a Borg sphere and I think we should know how." The broad shouldered man with the tribal face tattoo replied as he finally took his eyes off the screen to look at her. "As long as it's safe I say lets have a look."

Janeway rewarded her first officer with a crooked grin. "I was hoping you'd say that." She nodded once as she stood up, handing her coffee mug to an ensign as she made her way towards the turbolift. "Seven and Lieutenant Torres report to the transporter room. Tuvok you're with me." Janeway ordered before looking at her first officer from inside the lift. "You have the bridge, Commander."

Chakotay nodded and as soon as the turbolift doors closed the bridge fell into an all to familiar routine. This wasn't after all the first time they'd boarded a Borg ship. Nor was it the first time Janeway broke the rule about captain's not leading away missions. They tried to follow Starfleet rules and regulations and for the most part they did, despite a good portion of the crew being ex-Marquis, but being seventy thousand light years from home gave them a little wiggle room.

Seven of Nine and B'Elanna Torres were already in the transporter room when Janeway and Tuvok arrived. Both women wore a phaser on their hips, Seven carried her tri-corder, and B'Elanna had her engineering kit slung over her shoulder. Seven was a tall, slender blonde with brilliant blue eyes who wore her hair in a tight knot atop her head. She had a mental arch above left eyebrow, a mental starbrust just under her right ear, and a mental mesh on her left hand; all remnants of her time as Brog drone. B'Elanna was Seven's physical opposite. The half Klingon-half Human was darker in completion, shorter, with dark hair and eyes and rather gentle looking cranial ridges. They were both in contasrt with Janeway's very Celtic appearance of pale skin, red hair and popping blue-gray eyes.

As soon as Janeway, Tuvok, and two of Tuvok's security officers were armed with phasers and tri-corders, they all stepped onto the transporter pad. After explaining that this was a recon mission and their goal was to gather as much information as they could as quickly as they could, Janeway looked at the young crewmen behind the transporter controls. "Energize."


	2. Chapter 2

The Borg sphere was dark and filled with smoke that danced and swirled in the beam lights the away team shone over the ship's surfaces. The dead bodies of drones littered the floor under the away teams' feet or hung grotesquely from their alcoves. There were also several dead bodies that weren't Borg but were about to be. The away team moved carefully though the sphere with phasers held at the ready while Seven and Janeway scanned the area. Janeway wasn't sure which was more eerie, an active Borg ship or this dead one. Both were figments from a sick and twisted nightmare. When a faint signal sounded on her tricorder it nearly made Janeway jump as it sliced through the creepy silence. The text that crossed her and Seven's screens caused the two women to look at each other with quizzical looks. Janeway nodded her head to Seven to proceed and then quickly followed the taller woman as Seven lead them wordlessly deeper in the haunting ship.

"B'Elanna see what you can find out about what happen to this ship." Janeway ordered as they moved past a section of computer access terminals. The Human-Klingon engineer nodded and quickly went to work on the sphere's computer core. Tuvok ordered his security officers to remain with B'Elanna while he continued to follow Janeway and Seven.

The look on Seven's face intrigued Janeway. It was focused and confused and curious all at the same time, not that anyone else would know that. Over the years Janeway had become rather good at reading the younger woman's seemingly non-present expressions. This particular look was a look that Janeway enjoyed seeing on the younger woman's face. Seven liked solving things as long as they were solvable. She liked to explore as long as she had the comfort of something solid like scientific and mathematical fact. She was Janeway's voice of reason when Janeway was in her gunslinger mode, just as much as Janeway was Seven's voice of reason when ex-drone perfectionist struggled with the imprecations of human reality.

As she watched the tall blonde work her way through an environment that seemed both foreign and natural to her, Janeway couldn't help but think about how much Seven had grown in such a few short years. The woman-child Seven had once been had become a wonderful young woman. It warmed Janeway's heart to think about the way Seven embraced her humanity with such an innocence and passion, anger and fear, joy and pain. The younger woman had worked so hard to get where she was now and Janeway couldn't be more proud of her, nor could she not help but love her.

"This way." Seven said with the slightest pitch to her voice, one that only Janeway noticed. Seven was feeling very uneasy about being aboard this ship and she wasn't really sure why. Some of her apprehension eased when she felt Janeway step closer to her. The older woman's nearness, her warmth, burned away the sudden cold Seven had felt wash over her. Feeling more at ease allowed Seven to focus on her intense curiosity. The ship's structure was unlike anything Seven was aware of.

Janeway and Tuvok followed Seven deeper into the sphere with out hesitation, although Tuvok made it known that the further in they went the more likely it was that Voyager would lose their signals. Janeway acknowledged her chief tactical officer's words of caution but she had to admit, at least to herself, that she was as enthralled with all of this as Seven was.

Seven walked into the center of the sphere and stopped dead in her tracks. The ex-drone nearly shivered as she took the room in. It reminded her of the space she'd shared for a brief time with the Borg Queen. The difference was that the center of the room wasn't taken up by the Queen's central alcove, but a single column like structure that gave off a soft green glow. She approached the structure slowly, scanning it as she did. The chamber seemed to have it's own power supply and as Seven came to the other side of it, she knew why. A small round window allowed her to see inside and what she found brought a soft inaudible 'oh' to her lips. Inside, floating in bright green goo, was a small human looking infant. The structure was a maturation chamber, but one that Seven was unfamiliar with. Seven watched wordlessly as the chamber's tiny occupant moved it's tiny arm in the bio-fluid completely unaware of what was going on around it. Sliding her tricorder back into it's holster Seven began accessing the chamber's controls.

Coming up behind Seven, Janeway's eyes grew slightly in surprise and her 'oh' was far from inaudible. She was aware of maturation chambers but none like this; a single chamber in the middle of an isolated part of the ship? She pressed her hand to the glass window as she continued to look at the infant inside. Then she looked over to Seven who continued working the Borg controls. As Janeway looked around the room she noticed that there wasn't another maturation chamber insight. There had been dozens on the ship they'd found Icheb and the other Borg children on. "Seven?"

"It is unusual." Seven stated. "I am unaware of there ever being a ship with only one maturation chamber, and never one of this style." The readings she was getting told her the tiny infant inside was alive and stable, but the chamber's power supply wouldn't last much longer. "She is alive but will not remain that way if we leave her in there much longer. The chamber has less then twenty minutes of power left."

Janeway nodded her understanding. She turned her attention back to the floating baby whose eyes were closed but seemed to be stretching in the fluid as one might a mother's womb. "Can she be removed from the chamber safely?"

Seven tapped at the screen for several seconds before finally nodding. "I believe so. All of her systems appear to be fully formed. Her development would appear to be the point of birth."

It didn't take Janeway long to start issuing her commands. "Tuvok, hail the ship. Let the Doctor know we're beaming him a Borg infant. Seven, do what you have to do to get her out of there."

Tuvok nodded while Seven began tapping in commands. After cutting power to the incubation unit that would have been used in the second stage of maturation, Seven beamed the infant out of the chamber and into it. Because the unit was now offline the infant was safe from the connection tubes that would have attached to it the moment the infant appeared in the unit. She and Janeway both walked over and watched as the tiny being took her first real breaths, her tiny chest just barely rising and falling. The infant stretched her limbs, testing their movement outside the bio-fluid. Then she began to whimper in preparation form testing out her now clear lungs. Seven returned to the control panel and lowered the already failing shielding around the chamber, then beamed the infant right to Voyager's sickbay.

"Doctor to Janeway. Patient received."

"Acknowledged Doctor." Janeway replied before turning to Seven. "Lets get as much information as we can get and return to the ship. I don't want to be here if someone else out there received that single as well."

"Yes Captain." Seven replied and went back to the station she'd been working at. She could access the ship's computer core from there as well as divert power to the station B'Elanna was at.

While Seven and B'Elanna worked on the computer information Janeway used her

tricorder to scan the unassimilated bodies that littered the ships corridors. They were humanoid, but not a species they were familiar with. She ordered Tuvok and one of the other security officers to scan some of the other bodies and some of the drones as well. While her officers worked Janeway took a closer look around. She'd been on enough Borg ships to know this wasn't the everyday run of the mill ship.

Once the away team got all the information they were going to get, they headed back to Voyager. Thanks to Seven they had what they needed to download the ship's core without having to remove it.

"It will be easier if we tried to decipher the information we have in the cargo bay." Seven commented as they stepped off the transporter pad.

"I'll take what we got and start setting up." B'Elanna offered as she gathered up the data nodes.

"Good." Janeway acknowledged as the team started splitting up. "Tuvok, have Tom move us to a safer distance, but still in the area. Go to yellow alert and be on the watch for any activity heading our way. You and Harry see what you can find out about that other ship. Seven and I will be in sickbay."

The normally quiet Voyager sickbay was filled with the angry protesting cries of a small red faced infant. The sound seemed to bounce off the walls and nothing the Doctor, Voyager's Emergency Medical Hologram turned Chief Medical Officer, did seemed to sooth the frightened, annoyed, child. It had started the moment she'd been beamed aboard and despite his best efforts wasn't stopping. He finally ended up calling for back up.

"You called, Doctor." Neelix called out as he walked into sickbay.

The Doctor turned around with the screaming baby in his arms. He'd never been so glad to see the Talaxian moral officer. "I can't seem to get her to stop and since you have experience with…"

Neelix smiled a warm, surprised, smile that seemed to light up the whole room. He walked over to the Doctor and the baby rubbing his hands together in a pleased sort of fashion. The squat, hairy, specked man who served as Voyager's moral officer, chef and sometimes diplomat absolutely loved children. He reached out and took the infant, now wrapped in a soft medical blanket, from the doctor and cuddled her close, the way he had done with his goddaughter Naomi when she was a baby. "Where did she come from?"

"The Captain had her beamed over from the Borg sphere." The Doctor explained as he retrieved his medical tricorder.

"Again?" Neelix chuckled as he tried to sooth the infant. "You're not the first Borg baby to be sent to us." He told her. The baby stopped crying for a moment and looked at Neelix, but then started to cry again.

Minutes seemed like days while the two men tried to calm the infant. While Neelix held her, the Doctor was able to scan her enough to tell there was nothing physically wrong with her, yet neither of them could figure out why she wouldn't stop crying. Both men turned with pleading looks at the sound of the doors opening.

Seven walked into sickbay with Janeway, and looked at the two men and the small infant with her eyebrow raised. "Is there a problem with the child Doctor?"

The Doctor sighed in annoyance. "Other then her need to shatter the glass in here I can't find anything, but I can't fully examine her until she calms down."

Seven walked over to the two frazzled men and took the infant from Neelix. She wasn't really sure why, other then recalling something the Captain had said to her once in a similar situation about following her maternal instincts. She'd only held an infant once, when they'd found Icheb and the others, but that had only been for a few moments. It was awkward at first. She was use to older children such as Naomi Wildman, Icheb, the other former drone children. They could walk, talk, explain what was wrong with them, they could be independent, everything that this small infant couldn't and wasn't yet. It took a moment for Seven to get the feel for holding the infant, keeping her head stable in the bend of her arm, her other arm supporting the baby's weight, but once she got use to the way the baby felt she seemed to relax. Neelix and the Doctor watched in utter amazement as the baby stopped crying and snuggled into Seven's arms almost the instant she'd been placed there.

"Fascinating." The Doctor said softly as he walked over to them. He opened his tricorder and began to scan the baby without asking Seven if she'd mind holding her while he did so. "She's been crying since you sent her over."

"Well, it looks like our Seven has a magic touch." Janeway said with a smile on her face. She'd watched, wordlessly, as Seven had taken control over the infant. With a soft smile on her face she came over to stand next to the taller woman and looked down at the baby. The Captain's smile brightened as she reached out to caress the baby's soft cheek. "She's so tiny."

"Fascinating." The Doctor repeated as he ran his scans.

Janeway managed to keep from rolling her eyes, but only barely. "You've been reading Ambassador's Spock's memoirs again, Doctor. Care to give the imitation a rest and fill us in?"

The Doctor gave her an annoyed look before taking his tricorder over to the main station and placing it in it's downloading dock. "The infant is human." He stated bluntly. "She was, as Seven stated, at the end of the human gestation cycle, and is in perfect health. There are Borg enhancements, but not the normal Borg implants that should be worked into her system."

"Human." Janeway repeated, her shock evident in her voice. She reached out and touched the baby's cheek again, causing the baby to blink her eyes open. Crystal blue eyes locked onto blue-gray eyes for several moments before the infant began taking in the rest of her surroundings. "Do newborn Borg have implants?"

"Not to the degree a mature drone would." Seven answered as she continued to hold the baby but focus on the adults. Though she would glance down each time she saw the Captain touch the child, and she did look into the baby's eyes when they opened.

Janeway looked at the doctor. "What does she have?"

"Nanoprobes of course." The Doctor replied as he accessed the tricorder scans. "Basic stuff like an interlink node, neural transceiver, a cortical array and node, neuro-processing adjunct."

"That all sounds pretty average." Janeway cut in. "Seven?"

Seven had been looking down at the small bundle in her arms, watching her breath, watching the way she snuggled closer to her body. 'For the warmth' Seven told herself. "If an infant is placed in stage one maturation they are adapted only enough to survive with in. More implants would have been added during the following stages. It is not until stage four that they would appear more Borg in appearance."

"Are the implants active?" Janeway asked.

"She was removed from the maturation process prematurely, the assimilation process interrupted, the implants should not be functional other then to maintained her life functions." Seven answered.

"And yet" The Doctor interjected, "the distress signal Seven was receiving appears to have come from her neural transceiver. It seems to have stopped transmitting."

Seven looked up at the doctor as she listened to what he was saying. "I am not linked to the hive mind. I should not have been able too…"

"The signal doesn't appear to be the standard drone signal." The Doctor once again interjected. "It isn't broadcasting to the Collective, at least not on any band we're familiar with. I need to run further scans, but there are defiantly some unique aspects to the child's implants."

Janeway reached out and gently traced the only visible implants on the child, the node above her right eye, and the starburst behind her left ear, polar opposites of Seven's facial implants. "Do whatever needs done, Doctor. Keep her from sending any more SOS's or linking with the Collective. Seven, while you and B'Elanna are checking those files keep an eye out for anything that may help the Doctor."

"Yes Captain." Seven replied as she locked eyes with the older woman for a moment.

"Alright, keep me informed." Janeway replied before smiling at the baby. "You're in good hands kiddo. Welcome to Voyager."


	3. Chapter 3

As Janeway made her way to the bridge from sickbay her thoughts drifted to the previous times she and her crew had dealt with Borg children. One had been created and born right on Voyager. He'd been an accidently created during transport, a cross between Seven's Borg nanoprobes, the Doctor's mobile emitter, and a human DNA sample. He had been Seven's son and his death, he'd sacrificed himself for the safety of Voyager and her crew, was still painful for Seven. Then there had been the children from the Borg cube who had taken Seven and Harry Kim hostage. The Collective had abandoned them when their cube was nearly destroyed. Janeway had welcomed them aboard Voyager and Seven acted as segregate mother until all but Icheb had been returned to their home worlds and families. Which situation would this be? Would the Collective come for this child the way they had for One? Or had this child too been tossed aside like a burnt out gel pack?

"Anything of interest over there, Captain?" Chakotay asked as Janeway stepped onto the bridge from the turbolift. "Tuvok's being tight lipped."

Tuvok raise an eyebrow as he looked up from his console, but said nothing.

Janeway smiled as she made her way to the center seat. "We have their computer core." She began as she lowered herself into her chair. "And a new addition to Voyager's population." Chakotay, Harry and Tom all looked at her questioningly. She smiled at them, making them wait as a crewman brought her a mug of coffee. She took a long sipped and then as she lowed the steel mug to her lap she said, "It would appear Mister Paris that your little one will have a play mate."

"Captain?" The sandy blonde haired young man at helm asked with a curious expression.

There were times, such as now, when Janeway took pleasure out of teasing her officers. She loved having the kind of bond with them that allowed her to do so. "The signal that Seven picked up lead us to an unborn but very much alive human baby girl." Janeway explained after taking another sip from her coffee. "The baby's in sickbay with the Doctor as we speak."

"We have another Borg child on board?" Tom asked, his curious expression turning into an amused smirk.

Janeway shook her head. "She's more human then Borg, but yes we have another child onboard."

Tom smiled brightly. Ever since he and B'Elanna found out they where expecting their first child, everything baby put the dopiest grin on Tom's face. His grin was infectious since Harry was smiling as well now. "Now you don't have to worry about your baby only having holographic friends, Tom." Harry chuckled.

"Aren't we getting ahead of ourselves?" Chakotay asked. "We don't know much about this child yet, do we?"

"The Doctor is running all the medical tests while B'Elanna and Seven are looking through the data we brought back with us." Janeway answered as she turned her head to look at her first officer. "What we know right now is that she is human, she has a few standard issues implants, and that according to Seven because we took her from the Bord equivalent of a womb she has never been assimilated and there for not fully Borg."

"Is not being fully Borg a good or a bad thing?" Chakotay asked.

"I'll let you know as soon I do, Commander." Janeway replied and then turned to look at Harry. "Anything from the other ship?"

"No life signs, but the bio signatures match those from the scans the away team took of the bodies on the sphere." The young ensign answered. "I'm going to try to establish a link with their computer, but their back up power is on its last cell."

"Do what you can Harry." Janeway replied, before turning to Tuvok.

They had worked together for so long that Tuvok answered her question before she even asked it. "There is no Borg activity in the sector."

"Yet." Tom added. "Lets hope the kid's call home only made it as far as Seven."

Janeway silently agreed, but nothing was ever that easy. Something in her gut was telling her this was just the start of something more, but she couldn't figure out what that could possibly be. Once Seven reported that she and B'Elanna were set up and underway in the cargo bay, she decided to spend the rest of her shift in her ready room. She needed time to sort everything out, to plan ahead, but there was still just to much they didn't know, didn't understand for her to get a grip on it all. Several hours later Janeway decided she'd had more then enough of being behind a desk. She was far from being a hands-off kind of captain. In fact she jumped in head first to get just as down and dirty as her officers at every opportunity she could find. After a brief check in with her bridge officers Janeway headed down to cargo bay two.

Seven stood at her control station working on decrypting the Borg encoding that was keeping her and B'Elanna out of the files they'd downloaded. None of this was making sense, and Seven really disliked it when the Borg didn't make sense to her. It was really hard for her to explain because she didn't really understand it herself. She would never want to go back to the Collective, she was an individual with a life; a life she would fight to keep. And yet it bothered her to know that the Collective went on with out her that they continued beyond her knowledge of them.

"I passed B'Elanna on her way to the mess hall." Janeway said with a gentle smile as she came into the cargo bay. "But I had a feeling you'd still be here working."

"Since I do not require a nutritional supplement at this time I remained to continue working." Seven replied without looking up. She could feel the Captain's approach. The other woman's physical nearness, her natural warmth, seemed to burn away any fatigue and frustration she was feeling. To most her tone would still seem cool and aloof, but she knew Janeway would hear the sudden softness as she added, "I have never encountered encryptions like these before."

Janeway walked over to the taller woman and leaned against the console as she watched Seven's seemingly expressionless face. To anyone else the ex-drone would simply look as if she were once again obsessing over her work, seeking perfection and fearing falling short of it. Janeway knew better. "Want to talk about it?"

"I have nothing to report at this time, Cap…" Seven began but was quickly cut short with a single softly spoken word.

"Annika."

Seven stopped what she was doing. For a moment her hands hovered over the control panel she'd been working at, but then they dropped to her sides. It hadn't been an easy adjustment from mentor and apprentice to where the two women stood now, but she and Kathryn had managed to work things out. It took both of them time to work out the boundaries of their relationship, once they'd finally figured out they'd wanted, needed, and could have a relationship, and there had been mistakes made and near misses that nearly cost them, but in the end they gave in to their emotions, their wants, their desires, and their hearts.

The use of her human name let Seven know that it wasn't her captain inquiring about her status, but her lover asking how she was feeling. She slowly turned her head to look at the older woman, her piercing blue eyes locking with the warm blue-grays of her lover. Seven continued to look into those eyes as she linked her hands behind her back, for Seven this was a relaxed posture.

When she saw Seven's body relax Kathryn reached out and brushed at her lover's pale cheek. She'd struggled for a long time over this. For a long time Kathryn had put herself on the back burner so that Captain Janeway could focus on her ship and her crew. It was a hard realization for her to come to, but she finally figured out that Janeway was a better captain when Kathryn was a happy woman, and Seven made her a happy woman. "Being on that ship had an effect on you, Annika."

"I find being near the Borg disturbing." Seven replied softly. "Especially when it is something that is unknown to me, and I do not understand it."

"They've become alien to you, Annika." Kathryn said softly as she reached out to brush her fingers against Seven's arm. "You've grown past them."

Seven thought about that for a moment and then nodded.

"There's something else." Kathryn noted after watching the play of emotion in Seven's eyes.

Again Seven nodded as she relaxed her arms and allowed them to hang at her sides. The brush of Kathryn's fingers sent warmth flooding through her and it calmed her in a way that nothing else could. "Something about that ship in particular bothers me, but I do not know what."

This time Kathryn was the one nodded. "Me too. Something in my gut says there's more to this then meets the eye." Then she smiled in a teasing way as she said, "It sounds like you're starting to pay more attention to your instincts, Seven."

No one else would have seen it but Seven crinkled her nose. She was not comfortable with the idea of instincts. Kathryn was the one who went with her guts, Seven went with logic. "I should keep working. The answers are in those files somewhere."

Kathryn chuckled softly as she brushed at the other woman's cheek. "In the morning, Annika." She smiled warmly before kissing Seven softly. "I'd love nothing more then to take you with me back to our quarters, but you need to regenerate."

Seven returned the smile as she caught the other woman's hand in her own. "I can put it off for another…."

"Doctor to Captain Janeway."

Kathryn sighed a slow groan. She was fairly sure that the Doctor had written a subroutine that allowed him to pick the most frustrating times to interrupt them. "Go ahead, Doctor."

"We are having difficulty…"

The wailing in the background was all she needed to hear to know what he was going to say next. "I'm on my way."

"I will continue working." Seven said smugly once Kathryn had disconnected from the comm..

Kathryn glared but there was a softness to her eyes. "You will regenerate."

"Is that an order?" Seven asked teasingly as she lifted her eyebrow and smirked ever so slightly.

"Yes." Kathryn replied in her command voice. Then she leaned in and kissed Seven more firmly but quickly because of where they were. "I mean it, Annika, you need to regenerate."

"I will comply." Seven replied with a soft smile. She watched as Kathryn left and then quickly returned to her work. She worked for a couple more hours before she finally stepped into her alcove to regenerate. Kathryn had said she had to regenerate; she didn't say how soon after she'd left she had to comply.


	4. Chapter 4

Sickbay was quiet and still; the total opposite of how it had been the night before. Seven stepped through the doors and looked around finding who she was looking for sitting at the Doctor's desk. She walked through the main bay without a sound and stopped just inside of the small office area. She stood there for a few moments simply watching the striking auburn haired woman who was looking over a padd and sipping at her coffee with her feet up on the desk. Kathryn had taken her uniform jacket off and was sitting there in her Starfleet issue undershirt; she looked comfortable and relaxed, a rare sight outside the privacy of the captain's quarters. The older woman was absolutely stunning and Seven had no issues with spending time simply watching her.

"Good morning, Annika." Kathryn said softly as she looked up from her padd and into the bright blue eyes of the tall blonde standing in the doorframe. She'd known Seven had come into the room the moment she'd heard the doors open.

"You stayed all night." Seven said simply as she walked closer to the desk.

Kathryn shifted her feet from the desk to the floor and then arched her back in a long stretch. "I tried to leave when the Doctor brought in another female crewmen. We thought that maybe it was the female factor, but it didn't help, so I stayed." She glanced at the bassinet to her left and shrugged, a soft smile on her lips. "For all intents and purposes she was just born yesterday, sticking around just seemed the right thing to do." She smiled a little more as she turned her gaze back to Seven. "Besides I never sleep well when you're regenerating instead of sleeping beside me."

A small smile pulled at Seven's lips. "It is only once every two weeks now, Kathryn, I am sure it does not make that much of a difference in your sleep cycle."

"You would be surprise at how fast someone can get use to having someone beside them as they sleep." Janeway replied moments before the sound of fussing could be heard coming from the bassinet. "Well it looks like someone is ready to face her first full day of life outside a Borg womb."

Both Janeway and Seven walked over to the bassinet and looked down at the small squirming infant as she stretched out her tiny body despite being restricted by the blanket she was swaddled in. The baby yawned and crinkled her little nose before letting out her first demanding cry of the day.

"Is she unwell? Where is the Doctor?" Seven asked as she watched the infant protest in the only way she knew how.

Kathryn smiled as she reached down and picked the baby up. "Off line. He was getting irritated which ended up irritating me." As soon as the baby was in her arms she began to settle down a little but was still informing the two clueless adults that she needed something. "She's fine Seven. She's just letting us know she needs tending too."

"Perhaps we should bring him back to care for the child." Seven offered as she watched Kathryn sway gently in an attempt to further pacify the infant.

Kathryn shook her head as she tried to remember what to do. "She doesn't respond to him very well."

"Then perhaps Neelix." Seven offered as she titled her head to the side and watched as the expression on the child's face changed.

"She might be hungry or maybe she needs…" Kathryn suddenly crinkled her nose.

"Kathryn?" Seven asked when the other woman stopped talking, and then she to crinkled her nose. "What is that scent?"

Kathryn laughed as she began to clear an area of the Doctor's desk. "Hand me a dipper, Annika."

"A dipper?" The younger woman asked as her left brow rose in a very Vulcan like manner.

Kathryn pointed to a basket near the bassinet as she laid the baby down on the desk and unwrapped her from her blanket. Neelix had replicated every possible item she might need for the baby before he'd left the night before.

Seven walked over and retrieved the entire basket and brought it to Kathryn. She watched curiously as Kathryn tended to the baby, seeing a side of the woman she'd never seen before. She was aware of Kathryn's nurturing side, she had experienced it first hand, but this was so much deeper somehow. "You are familiar with the care of infant humans? I did not know this about you."

Kathryn laughed as she carefully washed, changed, and dressed the baby. "I did a lot of babysitting when I was younger. I guess the basics are something you don't forget."

The baby continued to fuss even after Kathryn picked her up and it made Seven tilt her head to the side. She could detect the deference in tone and pitch of the child's cry now as compared to the one prier and she found it intriguing. "She is still not content, but I do not believe it is for the same reason as before."

"She's probably hungry. Computer activate the EMH." Janeway ordered as she gently bounced the child in her arms.

The Doctor shimmered into existence just behind the two women and as soon as he was solid, or as solid as a hologram got, he walked over to join them. "Is there a problem with the baby?"

"I believe the child requires a nutritional supplement." Seven informed him as she stood beside Kathryn with her hands clasped behind her back.

The Doctor nodded and went to the replicator. "I'll prepare something tailor made just for her when I've finished analyzing all of her scans, until then we'll use a standard formula for human infants."

Taking the bottle from him Janeway offered it to the baby who took it without hesitation. She smiled down at the little girl as she leaned against the edge of the desk, totally oblivious to the fact that she was being watched. She had given up on the idea of having children herself. Her career had taken priority and then Voyager had become lost and getting home became her priority. As she held the tiny newborn baby in her arms she realized yet again just how much she'd sacrificed in her life.

"Captain," The Doctor said after several moments of observation. "Have you given any thought as to what is to be done with her?"

Janeway looked up. She was a little startled by the question so she had to think for several moments before answering. "It would be unfair to order someone to take her. We'll simply have to ask and see who'd be willing to act as a foster parent. Until then she'll have to remain here."

"Captain." The Doctor protested. "This is a medical facility not a day care center."

Janeway gave him one of her trademark looks as she replied, "She is still under medical supervision isn't she? You need her here to continue your testing? So what's the problem?"

"I am not a nanny." The Doctor answered.

"It's not permanent Doctor." Janeway reassured him as she returned her attention to the baby. "I'll begin making inquiries as soon as possible." When the baby was finished she shifted her so she could pat her back to burp her. "Do you have any suggestions as to who I should ask?"

The Doctor had been watching the Captain very carefully so he had no issues with saying, "In fact I do."

"Who?" Janeway asked, her attention still on the baby.

The Doctor watched a moment longer before saying, "You and Seven."

Janeway's head snapped up. "Us?"

The Doctor nodded. "You and Seven have been the only people she's respond too. It's obvious you're a natural at tending to the child. Plus, she is Borg, and that is Seven's specialty."

"The Doctor makes a valid point concerning her status as a Borg." Seven said as she looked at Kathryn who was staring at her. "He is also correct in his observation regarding your skill at caring for the child's needs."

Janeway was feeling completely caught off guard. With the baby burped and sleeping soundly she walked over and placed her back in the bassinet. She wasn't sure why the thought of caring for the child scared her but it did.

Seven could tell that Kathryn was feeling very uncomfortable and quickly decided to jump in. "Captain, are you not needed on the bridge?"

Janeway looked at Seven with such a look of gratitude. "Yes, I shouldn't keep Harry waiting to give me his report. It makes him nervous." Her captain's mask slipped easily in place as she said, "Keep me informed."

Once the Captain was gone Seven turned to the Doctor. "I will help care for her while she remains here."

The Doctor nodded. His gaze still lingered on the door that the Captain had all but ran out of. Her reaction was puzzling. "I suppose that will have to do."

Seven gave a short nod as she walked over to look down at the sleeping infant. The baby's color was a nice full human pink, her lips had also gained more color, and there was now noticeable fine rusty fuzz on her head. "Have you ascertained the reason for the differences in her implants?"

"Not yet." The Doctor admitted. "They're upgrades compared to yours, but that doesn't explain why they're so different. I've deactivated her neural transceiver so she won't be calling out for any more help. Her interlink node is dormant. Everything else is working within acceptable parameters."

"Will she need to regenerate?" Seven asked as she reached down into the bassinet to caress the baby's jaw line. "The alcoves we have currently will be inefficient if she does. I will need to build one appropriate for her functions."

"I'm not sure." The Doctor replied. "She is capable of doing all the functions that regeneration is meant to replace, like sleeping, eating, and purging waste and toxins, on her own. But she still has implants and nanoprobes, so there might be a need when it comes to keeping those functioning. Her systems don't appear to be dependant on the implants, enhanced, but not dependant."

After listening to what the Doctor had figured out so far Seven gave a short nod before saying, "I will asset you until I am due to meet with Lieutenant Torres."

After running several more tests and countless scans the Doctor asked if Seven would take the baby with her while he worked. He made sure she had what she would need after filling her in on what he knew about human childcare. Then shooed her and the baby out of sickbay.

Seven of Nine stood at the computer consol in cargo bay two trying to access the downloaded information from the Borg sphere's computer core. The access codes, command pathways, encryptions, were all different then what Seven knew, and her inability to open the files was starting to frustrate her.

"So any luck cracking that thing yet?" B'Elanna called out as she entered the cargo bay.

Seven shook her head. "This may take longer then I first estimated."

B'Elanna started to reply but something to Seven's left caught her eye. She walked over to the object and couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face. "We have an assistant I see."

"I do not think the child has the compactly nor the knowledge to help us, Lieutenant." Seven stated flatly before continuing in a more relaxed tone. "At least at this point in time, she was meant to be Borg after all."

B'Elanna looked at Seven for a long moment before smiling and shaking her head. "Do you think the cargo bay is the best place for a newborn?"

"She would not stop crying for the Doctor." Seven explained while her long, slender fingers danced over the interface. "He was unable to perform his required tasks so I said I would assist him since she seems to respond to my presence." She looked up and over at the bassinet. "I have adjusted the environmental controls to maintain her comfort and well being."

For several long moments B'Elanna looked at her crewmate and friend and then simply shook her head with a chuckle before asking, "What have you got so far?"

"The command pathways and informational nodes are not the same as the ones in a normal Borg ship." Seven replied as she returned to her work.

"So this wasn't a normal Borg ship?" B'Elanna asked as she took her place at the consol. She looked over what Seven had been up to and nodded as she noticed what the other woman had been talking about. "That seems like an awful lot of security protocol for a sphere, hell that seems like an awful lot of security for a cube."

Seven nodded slightly. She'd been having the same thoughts. If the ship had been diamond shaped rather then a sphere she'd have said it was the Queen's ship, but she quickly proved that theory to be unlikely. "Their purpose was clearly something highly valued."

"How valued are babies to the Borg?" B'Elanna asked with a quick glance to their guest.

"As important as any other drone." Seven replied as she looked up from what she was doing. She looked at B'Elanna a moment before asking. "You think the infant was the purpose of the ship?"

B'Elanna leaned against the console and nodded. "One funny looking maturation chamber in the middle of a sphere with twice the fire power and shielding of a battle cube, what would you think?"

"That theory is flawed because a single pre-natal drone is expendable." Seven replied. "However, I am finding that my knowledge of the Collective is becoming more flawed with the passage of time." Seven looked over at the infant for several moments before asking, "If the child is not the reason for such measures what is? If she is then what makes her so unique?"

"Well, lets put that big Borg brain of yours to work and find out." B'Elanna teased with a smirk.

Seven titled her head and gave B'Elanna her best know it all Borg look. "A Klingon's brain is larger in mass then a Humans."

B'Elanna laughed and shook her head before getting down to work.

"Damn."

"Harry?"

Harry looked up from his terminal. "Sorry Captain. I've been attempting to establish a link with the computer on the alien ship but every time I think the connection is made it gets kicked back."

"Any idea why?" Janeway asked as she turned around in her chair to look at the young ensign.

Harry just shook his head. "Not a one, Captain. I might have better luck if I could access the ship's computer directly."

"You want to head over there?" Chakotay asked as he too turned to look at Harry.

Harry felt a little nervous having them both staring at him but he managed a nod to their questions.

Janeway looked at the young man as she thought about his request. Harry had come a long way from the fresh faced ensign just out of the Academy he use to be when he first boarded Voyager, but Janeway still had moments of hesitation when it came to Harry because she sort of saw him with a maternal gaze. "Harry could you get your connection if you attempted it from the Delta Flyer at a closer range then Voyager is at?"

The look on Harry's face showed everyone he was working it out in his head and then he shrugged. "Unsure Captain. I don't really think it's about distance. I think it's just a really good failsafe program."

"Very well," Janeway said as she turned to look at Tom. "Mr. Paris, the two of you take the Flyer, but use extreme caution."

Both of the young men nodded and then handed over their stations to their stand-bys. Janeway watched as they entered the turbo lift and then returned her attention to the science report she'd been reading.

"So how's our newest crewmen?" Chakotay asked quietly as he leaned in closer to Janeway. "I heard you spent the night in sickbay. What does the Doctor have on you to make you do that?"

Janeway gave her first officer a half grin. "The Doctor doesn't have anything on me. I volunteered. As for the baby, she's fine, all things considered."

"Did Seven and B'Elanna have any luck with the core?"

"Not yet but they will." Janeway replied before turning her attention back to her work. "You know how Seven is when she's zeroed in on something."


	5. Chapter 5

It had taken the better part of the morning and afternoon, and both Seven and B'Elanna were reaching their tolerance limits, but Seven had finally found a pinhole in the encryption which she used to start breaking down all the security locks on the core and it's files. The data now streaming across the screen was broken and in Borg. B'Elanna couldn't read it at all, and Seven couldn't make sense of it. It was annoying Seven since she hadn't felt this inept at deciphering Borg intentions since her encounter with the Borg Queen. When Seven had been a Borg drone she hadn't been aware of there even being a Borg Queen, so when the woman presented herself to Seven it set the already emotionally overloaded young woman for a loop.

"Seven, don't the Borg keep detailed records of their assimilations?" B'Elanna asked as she looked over the data Seven was translating.

Seven nodded without looking up from her screen. "Each person is cataloged and given a pre-assimilation profile. It is a means of organizing the technology and knowledge that is being added to the collective mind."

"And every Borg ship assimilates at a pretty high rate?"

The baby began to fuss and Seven moved over to the bassinet to tend to her as she spoke. "On average each ship goes though an assimilation at least once a week if not more depending on wither it is a ship, planet, or other source."

"So a ship who hadn't participated in any assimilations would be considered abnormal?" B'Elanna asked as she continued to look over the data on her screen.

Seven's left eyebrow raised as she lifted the baby from the bassinet. She looked at B'Elanna who was looking at her and trying not to smile. The look B'Elanna was giving her was as intriguing as her question. "All Borg ships assimilate. Even the Queen's ship."

B'Elanna looked over the information again and shrugged. "This ship hasn't, or at least there's no record of it."

This made no sense. All Borg ships assimilate. Infants are just drones waiting to happen. A single human infant housed in the center of ship with more protection then a battle cube? Seven looked down at the baby as she wondered what was so special about this one pre-natal drone? Because as much as she wanted to deny it all the evidence was pointing to the ship's sole function being the care of the child. "I am afraid Lieutenant that I am at a loss in this situation."

"Well this has to be a first." B'Elanna chuckled as she looked up at the ex-Borg. "Seven of Nine. Stumped."

Seven didn't reply to B'Elanna's teasing she simply went back to work. She wasn't about to allow the Borg of all people to 'Stump' her.

The Doctor sat at his desk looking over the scans he'd taken of the new baby. He still didn't understand her implants, though he was able to figure out which needed to stay and which could go. The interlink node and the neural transceiver could be removed. Neither of those implants were fully ingrained in her physiology yet, nor did they serve a purpose in regulating her health, so removing them wouldn't harm her. The cortical array and node, and the neuro-processing node were a different story. They were deeply rooted into her physiology. What intrigued him most about these implants were some of the missing functions they appeared to have. The cortical node for instance didn't seem to have the fail-safe mechanism that shut down high brain functions when emotion or simulation reached high levels. She also appeared to have her own unique set of nanoprobes who base purpose at the moment were to act as a type of antibody. The neuro-processing adjunct wasn't an adjunct at all, it was more of a node which he theorized was more about increasing the child's ability to learn and processes data more then to manipulate the brains more basic synaptic functions.

If he didn't know any better he'd think this particular pre-natal drone was going to have the ability to learn and process emotion, but Borgs didn't learn they were uploaded with information through their interlinks and neural transceivers, and they didn't express or process emotions. He was starting to think that perhaps this infant was actually a prototype for a new class of drone. A try at replicating One perhaps?

A steady beeping coming from his computer terminal brought the doctor out of his thoughts. Pulling the unit closer to him he began looking over the newest scan results. He'd preformed a level one medical diagnostic on her so he could examine everything, right down to her muscle mass, metabolism, bone structure, and even the very structure of her DNA. He'd use the information to create a formula that would aide in her development perfectly, but it would also provide a medical blueprint for any further medical needs.

The Doctor read over the material noting pleasantly that she was indeed in perfect health. Although most of the report was pretty standard there was a bit of a surprised waiting for him. Two red flags were attached to her DNA analyses. Flagging a DNA scan normally meant the computer had been able to find matching DNA strains in the Federation medical database. The Doctor knew it would a long shot but he'd included the cross typing because the child deserved to know who she was, to know if she had a name and a family. The Doctor had expected the scan to last for hours if not days since it was pretty much a needle in a haystack search. Opening the file he read over its information. "This is impossible." He ran the search again, and again the same results came up. He ran it again, and for the third time the same results came up. "Well, this is a twist."

The Delta Flyer approached the wreckage of the alien ship very carefully. While Tom docked the best he could with the ship Harry scanned it to make sure it was safe to board. "I think we should wear the suits."

Tom groaned. "I hate the suits."

"I know but the Captain did say to use extreme caution." Harry replied to his best friend while he got up and headed towards the back to but on an environmental suit.

"You are such a Captain's Boy." Tom teased the younger man while making his final safety checked before joining him in the back. "Do you think we'll be able to find anything helpful?"

Harry just shrugged. "I don't know, something, anything. It's all to weird even for us. Knocked out alien ship, knocked out Borg super ship, the only survivor of either ship is a kid more Human then Borg floating around in green Borg goo."

Tom laughed as he sealed up his suit. "Ya know we really need to stop boarding Borg ships that have been set adrift before we become Voyager Home for Wayward Borg Children."

Harry just rolled his eyes as he sealed off his own suit.

The two men gathered their gear and beamed over to the derelict ship. It was dark and lifeless like the Borg ship, and there were signs of a battle everywhere the two men went. It was more then clear that the Borg had boarded the ship, but why where there still bodies littering the corridors? Borg didn't normally leave leftovers. As they worked their way in a general direction that they hoped would lead to the bridge, engineering, or better yet the computer core they took readings from the bodies around them, as well as general scientific scans.

"Hey check it out." Harry said as he pointed his wrist lamp at a set of open doors. "I wonder what's in there?"

Tom got a familiar look in his eyes and a small smile that often reminded his crewmates of a little boy's just before he did something he really shouldn't. "Only one way to find out."

The two of them walked closer to the open doors and shined their lights in before entering. The sight they found before them made both men gasp. There were Borg bodies, and various body parts such as arms, legs, torsos, implants, all over the place. They were in piles on the floor, in crates, on the walls, in bins, and on tables. There were even several hanging from the ceiling.

"It looks like something from an old horror movie." Tom said as he ran his light over the bits and pieces of Borg.

Harry walked over to a near by table and poked at a mechanical arm with the corner of his tool kit. "What do you think they were doing with all this?"

Tom opened his tricorder and started scanning some of the parts. "My guess would be they were looking for a way to destroy the Borg and these poor saps helped in their own way."

"But how could they get so many, volunteers, without them sending subspace messages to the hive?" Harry asked as he scanned a hanging torso.

Tom shrugged which looked awkward since he was wearing an evo suit. He understood the evil that was the Borg, he even took it kind of personal because of Seven and Icheb, but this was just somehow wrong to him. It was barbaric. "Only one way to find out. Lets find the bridge and see if we can't access their computer."

Harry nodded and quickly followed Tom out of the room and down the hall. The door to the bridge was open only enough for Tom to get his fingers into the slit. He managed to get the doors open enough for him and Harry to get in. There were more bodies but these didn't look like they'd been attacked. They were just sitting, or had fallen from where they were standing, dead.

"Lets get that data and get the hell out of here." Tom said as he took in the equally creepy scene.

Harry smirked. "What's the matter Tom scared the boogie man's going to jump out and bite you?"

Tom glared at his friend as they worked. "This coming from the kid who said a Borg cube reminded him of a haunted house and left a trail of playing cards to keep himself from freaking out."

"You weren't exactly mister calm, cool, and collected over there either." Harry reminded him.

"Yeah well you weren't one being held in an assimilation chamber." Tom held back a shiver. They worked for a few moments before Tom decided he needed something to take the creepy edge off. "Ya know everyone's wrong, there is something a hell of lot more scary then the Borg."

Harry looked up and smiled when his dark eyes meet Tom's light ones. Both men replied, "The Captain."

"When she's in a bad mood or pissed off." Tom added.

Harry laughed. "And when she hasn't had any coffee."

With the tension a little less heavy, it didn't take Harry long to gain access to the ship's computer. He had to admit that the program that had been added to bounce back hacking attempts was impressive, but hardly full proof.

"This is really wired." Tom said from his position near the command chair.

Harry looked up from the data module that was collecting the files he was after. "What about this isn't wired?"

"Well, these people's deaths wouldn't qualify." Tom looked up from the scans he was doing of the dead crewmen and over at Harry. "They were poisoned."

"Poisoned?"

"Yes Captain." Tom said from the pilot's seat of the Delta Flyer. "I scanned at least five of the bodies on that bridge and it all showed the same levels of some kind of poisoned gas."

Captain Janeway sat in her chair on the bridge of Voyager with an eyebrow raised. "Report back to the ship, Tom. I want the Doctor to check you and Harry out before I even consider thinking of sending you back to investigate with his help."

"Aye Captain. Paris out."

"It's not like the Borg to poison people." Chakotay said after the view screen went back to its view of the stars.

Janeway shook her head. "No it isn't, but after what Harry said about what they'd found, it sounds like it was the other way around."

"Do we know anything about the dead Borg on the sphere?"

"I'm about to find out." Janeway said as she stood up and headed for the turbo lift. "You have the bridge Commander."


	6. Chapter 6

The data streaming down the screens was finally starting to make sense as far as reading it, but what it all meant was another matter. Both Seven and B'Elanna stood over the main screen reading the Borg logs. The information didn't match anything either of them knew of the Borg. When Seven was Borg, and even after her liberation, for a long time she believed that all thoughts, all knowledge of the hive, were known to all Borg. There were no secrets kept between the Borg, no deception, and yet here was the truth once again staring her in the face. Here She was again, unwelcome and unwanted, in Seven's life. Tom had called her a puppet master. She called herself the one who was the hive; the one who was one of many. When Seven first heard the Borg Queen say that, she had thought it meant she was one Borg of many Borg, but after reading the information from the sphere, Seven was no longer so sure.

The doors to cargo bay two hissed open and Captain Janeway walked in. "Report."

"We finally got a good portion of the core's files open and translated." B'Elanna reported as the Captain walked closer to them.

"And?" Janeway asked as she looked at both her officers. She could tell they were both tense and she hoped that B'Elanna was taking enough breaks. She had to give her pregnant chief engineer credit, the young woman hadn't let her pregnancy get in the way of her duties at all. Seven she knew hadn't taken a break since she began working.

"It is unlike anything we have learned of the Borg so far." Seven began. There was a tightness in her voice that betrayed her confused and angry emotions.

"How so?" Janeway asked as she stood between the two women but closer to Seven.

B'Elanna called up the files regarding the sphere's over all purpose. "Well, it would appear that this sphere's main goal was not assimilation."

Janeway looked stunned. She looked down at the screen and began to read the file B'Elanna had called up. Her left eyebrow flew up in such a manner that B'Elanna nearly laughed. It amazed the chief engineer just how many of each other's mannerisms the two women picked up from one another, and she wondered for a moment if she and Tom were like that.

"So your telling me that the whole purpose of this sphere was the nurturing of the baby?" Janeway asked as she looked up from the screen. Her utter disbelief was evident on her face.

Seven nodded. "It would appear that the function of this ship was not unlike the interior chamber of a bee's hive." Seven explained using the analogy that B'Elanna had used while they were discussing what they were reading.

B'Elanna hid her smile as she listened to Seven make the bee hive analogy sound so technical. "The main job of the drones in this sphere was to protect the baby."

As if she knew she was being talked about the baby in question decided to make her presence known and it startled Janeway. "What is she doing here?"

"The Doctor was unable to care for her so I volunteered." Steven explained. "She has not been a hindrance to our work. Lieutenant Torres has been of assistance as well."

Janeway looked between the two younger women and then walked over to the small bassinet and picked up the baby girl who lied inside. For the briefest of moments she captain's mask slipped as she smiled at the tiny child in her arms. Then she looked back up at her officers. "I can see this is a very special little girl, but why would the Borg have any interest in her as an individual?"

The phrase that had been running though Seven's mind since she and B'Elanna had formed their theory came to the forefront of her thoughts once again, only this time she said it out loud. "I am one of many."

Both Janeway and B'Elanna looked oddly at Seven but she didn't notice right away, she was to busy forming her own theory. Finally she responded to their looks. "That is how the Borg Queen introduced herself to me. She said she was one of many."

"Makes sense I guess." B'Elanna said as she tilted her head and leaned into the consol, folding her arms across her chest. "She would be one of many Borg."

Seven gave B'Elanna a look that told the other woman that she had thought the same at first but no longer. "But what if that is not what she was referring too?"

"I see where you're going with this, Seven." Janeway said as she cradled the small child in her arms peacefully. "What if the collective is more like a swarm of bees then we think."

"More then one Queen?" B'Elanna added as she joined their train of thought. "But if that were true there would be more then one Collective. When a new queen bee is born she takes a portion of the drones, flies off, and creates her own hive."

Seven thought it over for a moment and then shook her head. "No. I think it would be more like one in a line of Queens." She looked over at Janeway and the child for a moment before adding, "The child would grow up and become the Borg Queen." Seven paused again. Her look turned from confusion to concern. "This would explain why I could hear the distress call. It was not just because our closeness to the ship set off my proximity transceiver."

"What do you mean Seven?" Asked Janeway as her mind filled with thoughts. If Seven was right and this child was indeed the Queen's heir, there was no doubt in her mind that the Queen would come looking for her. She had always wondered how a Queen was chosen, but now she wondered even more what made this little girl so special that she would have grown up to be Queen?

"During my time with the current Queen she established a personal link with me. One only between she and I." Seven told them. "When the sphere was destroyed the infant's neural transceiver sent out a call for the Queen's help, I just happened to receive it as well"

A grim expression grew over the faces of all the women because they were all thinking the same thing. It was B'Elanna who voiced the thought. "Does this mean that the Queen will be looking for the kid?"

"Yes." Seven said coolly. "Wouldn't you come after your heir if she were in distress?"

Janeway looked down at the little face that began to scrunch as the tension in the room suddenly became thick. "Don't worry little one. We won't let them have you." Then she looked up at her two officers. "We've taken her on before we'll do it again." Janeway paused for a moment as she reorganized her thoughts. With all the new information on the baby she'd nearly forgotten about why she'd come down in the first place. "While you were going though the sphere's daily logs did you come across anything odd in their health perimeters?"

Seven and B'Elanna exchanged confused looks and then looked back at Janeway. This time it was Seven who spoke up. "We did not look into those particular files in depth. Is there a reason for that action now?"

"Yes. Tom and Harry reported in from the alien ship. Not all the people on that ship were killed in a battle against the Borg. Some of them died from some type of poison." Janeway explained as she put the now sleeping baby back in the bassinet.

"Are Tom and Harry all right?" B'Elanna asked.

"They both looked fine when they called in." Janeway replied. "They had the good sense to wear evo suits, but I've ordered the Doctor to look them over as soon as they get back."

Seven went right to work finding and calling up the logs that recorded the physical wellness of the sphere's inhabitance. It took several minutes for Seven to find what she was looking for, but the time waiting didn't seem to bother either of the other two women in the room. B'Elanna had used the time to check in with Tom who'd been given a clean bill of health, but who complained that the Doctor was in some kind of weird mood, weirder then normal. The Captain seemed to be content with watching the baby, but Seven knew she wasn't simply watching the child sleep, she knew that the woman's mind was as active as her own.

"It would seem that the bio-filters of the drones all picked up on a toxin raging though the sphere's collective all at once." Seven looked up at Janeway and gave her a slight nod. "They too were poisoned."

"Well doesn't this little mystery just keep getting better and better." B'Elanna said with her trademark huffiness.

Janeway looked over the information on the screen after coming back to stand beside Seven. "You have no idea, B'Elanna. I'd like to see everyone in the conference room in…" Janeway's orders were suddenly cut off by the sound of her comm. badge beeping.

"Doctor to Captain Janeway and Seven of Nine. Please report to sickbay and bring the baby."

Janeway and Seven looked at each other for a moment with odd expressions on their faces. There was something in the tone of the Doctor's voice that didn't set right with either of them. Turning to B'Elanna, Janeway finished what she'd been saying before the Doctor's call. "I'd like to see everyone in the conference room in ninety minutes."

B'Elanna nodded, "Yes Captain."

The Doctor stood at the main control island looking over the information from his desk console. He still couldn't believe it even though he'd run the scans through the database over and over again, but there it was in living digital color. He had to be sure. He couldn't just present this news to them without being able to back it up. He was even planning on one more test before actually going through with it. He was not going to bring the furry that was Kathryn Janeway down on his head without giving her undisputable proof. When the doors hissed open the hologram actually jumped before turning to look at the women entering.

"You've got something for us, Doctor?" Janeway asked as she and Seven came towards him.

"I need to run one last test." He didn't say any more then that as he walked over to the trio with a hypo spray. First he took a blood sample from the baby, and then looked up at the Captain and Seven. "I'll explain in a moment." He told them before quickly taking a blood sample from each of them as well.

Janeway's nostrils flared and she'd have put her hands on her hips, but she had the baby in her arms. "You'd better have a damn good reason for what you just did or you'll find yourself permanently relocated to Naomi's Flotter programs."

"I found something while reviewing the child's scans. I need to prove or disprove my findings." He replied. He inserted the three blood samples into the scanner and would have held his breathe if he breathed.

"Doctor!" Janeway demanded startling the baby. She looked down at the girl and soothing her apologetically.

The computer beeped, he read the results, and again it was confirmed. Turning to look at the Captain, Seven, and the baby he explained what he'd discovered. "I'm not entirely sure how to explain this." The force ten glare he was getting told him to just do it. "As part of the complete medical work I ran the baby's DNA through the Federation medical data base looking for any matches. I thought it would be a long shot but worth taking. I also thought it would take a few days but clearly it didn't, because the search never had to go back Voyager's medical data base."

Janeway handed the baby over to Seven before finally putting her hands on her hips and barking, "Doctor! You're babbling. What did you find?"

The hologram licked his holographic lips. "Two biological genetic matches."

Janeway's blue-gray eys twitched in surprise. "You found her family?"

"I found her biological parents." The Doctor clarified.

Janeway's annoynce with the Doctor faded a little and her voice softened. "Who Doctor?"

"I ran the scans multiple times." He told them. "The blood analysis makes another positive result." He paused a moment before finally coming out with it. "The child is your and Seven's biological daughter."

It was a good think Janeway had handed the baby over because she would have dropped her from the shock. When the shock passed doubt sank in. There was no way she had heard him right. It just wasn't a possibility. Janeway stood there staring at the Doctor in disbelief. Finally when she was able to find her voice she asked, "Doctor, how is what your saying even possible?"

"The Borg are well aware of several extremely sophisticated abiogenic reproductive techniques." Seven finally added in. She wasn't sure what she was experiencing. Confusion; how could the child be a combination of her genetics and Kathryn's? Anger; how did the Borg get the material needed to do such a thing? And yet there was a part of her that she simply couldn't describe at the thought of sharing a child with Kathryn. Then there was the part of her that remembered the emotions of One's death, and giving Mezoti, Azan, and Rebi back to their people.

"Ok so it can be done. My question still stands. How can there be a possibility that this child is our child?" Janeway's mind was spinning. She was actually feeling lightheaded.

The Doctor handed Seven the padd he just downloaded the results too. "I can't answer that, Captain. I don't know the reasons or exactly how it was done. All I can tell you is that it was done. That baby is your daughter and she is Seven's."

Janeway leaned over and read the padd that Seven was reading. Both women looked up from it at the same time, their eyes locking for a long moment before their gazes fell to the sleeping child. They didn't even notice when the Doctor slipped out of the room.

"I don't understand how she could be ours, Annika." Janeway said softly as she looked down at the baby.

Seven didn't respond right away. She reached out after setting the padd aside and traced the tiny implant over the baby's eye. This was her daughter, their daughter, hers and Kathryn's. When she finally looked up and over at Janeway to answer her question, her voice was laced with emotion though she tried to sound as professional as she could. "I do not understand either, Kathryn, but it is fact, she is our child."

Janeway's mind was reeling and she was having a hard time thinking things through, so she did what came naturally, she slipped into command mode. "Maybe there's something in the sphere's computer files. There's still time before the meeting."

"I will head back to the cargo bay and finish working on the remaining files." Seven replied. She was a little hurt at Kathryn's reaction but she could hardly blame the other woman. They had just been slammed with this remarkable news and neither knew how to process it.

"Good. Then I'll see you at the meeting." Janeway replied in full command mode. She'd been looking into Seven's beautiful blue eyes, but then glanced down at the baby in her arms. It hit her like a brick in the face. The baby had Seven's eyes. Janeway's head snapped up suddenly. "I'll be on the bridge."

Seven had watched Kathryn carefully. She watched the play of emotion that no one else would have seen. She was glad they were both feeling overwhelmed and shocked, because she knew they would handle this together. After leaving sickbay, Seven headed back to the cargo bay and was surprised to find B'Elanna still there.

"So is he acting as weird as Tom said he is?" B'Elanna asked as she watched Seven and the baby approach.

After placing the baby back in the bassinet Seven turned and looked at B'Elanna. "He was acting odd but I believe it was due to his finding something important in the child's medical scans that he needed to inform the Captain and I about."

B'Elanna suddenly looked worried. "Is the kid ok?"

Seven nodded. "She is well." She and Kathryn hadn't been able to talk about the baby. She felt she knew Kathryn well enough to know what they would do. They would raise their child. She just wasn't sure what Kathryn wanted to do in regards to the crew. B'Elanna wasn't just a crewmember. She was a friend to them both, though their friendships were a bit odd. "The Doctor was able to discover who her biological parents are."

B'Elanna could tell there was something up so not only did she looked curious, she looked concerned for her friend. "Who?"

Seven felt the need to speak about this. She needed to hear it said allow so that she could work it all through in her own head. "The Captain and myself."

B'Elanna's eyes went wide and her chin hit the preverbal floor. "I'm sorry. Did you just say that that baby there." She pointed to the bassinet. "Is your and Captain Janeway's baby?"

Seven nodded. "She is biologically our daughter."

"Holy fucking Kahless." Was the only thing B'Elanna could think of saying.


	7. Chapter 7

Off in the distance the haunting darkness of the Borg sphere loomed like a broken sentinel. Captain Janeway stood by the large window in her ready room, staring at the sphere, and trying in vain to wrap her head around the idea of something so deadly being used to care for an innocent child. Her innocent child no less. That thought still sent a tidal wave of emotion through her. She was elated at having a child of her own. Overjoyed that the child was also Seven's. Scared out of her mind because she didn't know one thing about being a mother. Scared because she was once again reminded that there were children on this journey, and now one of those children was her own flesh and blood. She was angry as hell that she'd been violated in a way. How did the Borg even create this child and why? She was also in awe because from the moment she realized what the Doctor said was true, she loved that little girl with all her heart. And she was thankful because she wasn't sure she'd have ever been able to take such a step on her own.

The door chime to her ready room brought Janeway out of her thoughts and she quickly made her way down to her desk. She used the few extra moments it took her to refocus her thoughts, and settle back into the safe and comforting cloak of command. "Come."

There was a warm smile on Chakotay's face as he walked in and over to the desk. He'd noticed the way Janeway had looked when she'd stepped off the turbolift and he knew that there was something bothering her. He'd waited a little while, giving the overly private woman her space, but when he felt she'd had enough time to brood he decided it was time to make her talk. "Wanna talk about it?" He asked as he sat in the chair across from her.

"Talk about what?" Janeway asked as she looked at Chakotay. She sat back in her chair, crossed her legs, picked up her coffee mug and prepared herself for what she knew was coming. She and Chakotay had been friends long enough for her to know when he felt the need to 'assist' her, and to be truthful she could use someone to talk to at the moment.

"What ever it is that's caused this mood of yours." Chakotay replied as he reached out and picked up the ceramic four leaf clover paperweight Naomi had made for Janeway as a birthday gift last year. He knew she was about to ask what mood and it made him smile. "We've worked and lived so closely Kathryn, that I'd like to think I know you well enough to tell when something's bothering you. Granted I'm not Seven or Tuvok but I'd like to think we're close enough friends for you to talk to me when you need someone to talk to."

Janeway sipped from her mug as she collected her thoughts. Chakotay knew that she cared for him as a close friend. If she didn't she wouldn't have allowed him to help her work out her feelings for Seven. She sighed softly and then looked at her friend. "I guess it wouldn't do any good to tell you it's this whole situation?"

"We've dealt with worse and you've never looked so..." The tall, boarded shouldered man paused to think of the right word.

"Confused?" Janeway offered.

Chakotay nodded. "What's happened, Kathryn?"

Taking another drink from her cup, Janeway thought about telling her friend about what she'd just found out. She knew that she'd have to tell her people sooner or later, most likely sooner since they'd have to deal with the sphere's computer core at the meeting. They also had a right to know what they were about to face, because she had no doubt that the Borg would come for the baby. But she and Seven hadn't had a real change to talk about this. She'd run from sickbay like a horse out of a burning barn. Janeway sighed again. She hoped she hadn't hurt Seven by running out like that. Finally after a few more moments of thought, Janeway lowered her cup to the desk and looked her friend in the eyes, searching for the warmth she so often seen there. "According to the Doctor the baby's biologically mine and Seven's."

The shock registered in Chakotay's eyes just as she'd known it would. He was quite for a moment, but then asked. "How can that be possible?"

"We're not sure." Janeway answered. "Medically it's possible. But as far as how, when, and why the Borg decided to create a child using mine and Seven's DNA we've no clue. Seven's trying to find out if there's anything in the core we downloaded."

Chakotay looked at the auburn haired woman sitting across from him for a few moments. He could understand her mood now and why she'd looked so lost. "You've got a daughter, Kathryn." That sounded weird even to him so he knew it must sound weird and little frightening for her to hear. "Despite the circumstances that's got to be an amazing feeling."

"I'm not sure what I'm feeling, Chakotay." She admitted to him. "Everything is one mind numbing mess." Janeway raised her hands to temples and messaged. "I mean this morning when I woke up I was the captain of this ship, a friend, a lover which I'm still getting use too by the way, and now I'm the mother of a very sweet little girl with Seven's eyes."

"You noticed she had Seven's eyes?" Her first officer asked with a big bright smile on his permanently tan face and a knowing twinkle in his dark eyes.

Janeway smiled shyly. "It was the first thing I noticed. I just thought I was being overly romantic or something."

Chakotay smiled brightly as he read the softening of his friend's face. "Your in love with her already."

Janeway's smile brightened and there was a new light in her eyes that seemed to light the whole room. "I fell in love with her the moment I saw her in Seven's arms the day we beamed her over. It almost felt as if…"

"You knew she was yours." Chakotay cut in.

Janeway nodded. "I know that sounds ridiculous, but it was just one of those moments where you feel something but you don't realize it until you can fully understand the subtext."

"You're being given another change at having a happy life outside that uniform, Kathryn." He told her firmly. They had gone round and round about her right to a life when she was struggling over her feelings for Seven. "I know you must be feeling a dozen different emotions but don't let your anger, hurt, and fear over shadow the gift you've been given."

Taking his words to heart, Janeway nodded as she looked down at the Doctor's padd. Her emotions were still in a jumble, but as she sat there thinking about the small child in the cargo bay with her other mother, Kathryn couldn't help but feel something strong surge through her. There was a slight twitch to her eyes when she realized she'd just thought of herself and Seven as the baby's mothers so easily.

He saw the flicker in her eyes and smiled. "Now that's the Kathryn I've come to know. You're going to be a great mom, Kathryn."

Seven of Nine had spent the time she had before the senior staff meeting trying to find anything on the child that would explain the Doctor's discovery. She found the semantics for what was essentially an artificial womb, she found the stardate in which the viable embryo was placed in the womb, she even found details on the procedure used to create the embryo, but nothing about why it was created and nothing pertaining to her or Kathryn.

It all felt so madding to Seven as she walked down the corridor towards sickbay carrying the transport device that B'Elanna had replicated for the child. Her mind was trying to wrap it's self around so many questions and just as many possible answers, but for now Seven's questions would have to wait. She needed to find Neelix and join the others at the meeting. When Seven walked into sickbay she saw both Neelix and the Doctor hovering over the replicator.

"You're sure this won't be to heavy?" Neelix asked.

The Doctor shook his head. "Of course I'm sure. The diets tailor made specifically for her. If you use these ingredients you'll be able to make a fine mush, but it won't be needed for several more weeks. She's to young for anything more then formula."

Neelix was beaming. There hadn't been a baby on board since Naomi and they hadn't been expecting a new one until B'Elanna and Tom's child arrived. The arrival of this new little life was a gift. "This is such an exciting development, to have a new precious little person on board."

Seven stepped closer to the two men and titled her head to the side. "Am I interrupting?"

Both men spun around quickly and they each had bright smiles on their faces. Seven had to admit that the look on the Doctor's face now was an improvement over the distress he projected an hour ago. Seeing the two men being so at ease regarding the child's presence helped Seven to feel more at ease herself. She actually felt pride that they were so concerned with her child. That was such a strange thought to Seven, her child, that it sent a bolt of shock through her system every time.

"Ahh Seven, we were just working on more nutritional supplements for the baby." The Doctor said as he came closer and peered down into the carrier. "I hope she suffered no ill effects from having her blood sampled."

"She is functioning within normal perimeters." Seven replied as she placed the carrier on a near by bio bed. "She is however in need of a..." She paused to think of the correct term. "Babysitter."

Neelix beamed when he noted that Seven was looking at him. "I would love to Seven, but will she allow you to leave her? She hasn't had the best reactions to people other then you and the Captain."

Seven looked down at the infant who was had a look on her face that Seven thought looked like concentration as she flexed her fingers and hands. "She will comply."

Neelix laughed soft so he wouldn't startle the baby. "Infants don't normally comply so easily, Seven."

"Of course not, but I believe that Lieutenant Torres and I have come up with a way to keep her feel more secure." The tall blonde ex-Borg looked down at the baby while she stood there with her hands clasped behind her back.

"Seven." The Doctor interjected as he lifted the child from the carrier and fingered the material she was wrapped in. "Is this?"

"One of my bodysuits. Yes." Seven answered with the faintest of smiles on her lips.

Neelix laughed again. "A security blanket. Very clever, Seven."

Seven nodded her thanks at the compliment and watched as Neelix approached the Doctor and the baby. She'd noticed that the baby did not cry when the Doctor picked her up and she hoped that she would also remain claim when Neelix took her.

Neelix just looked down at the baby as the Doctor held her and smiled. She was so alert for one so young, and she clearly looked more at ease with her surroundings now. "You know this is your home now and that your safe with us don't you..." Neelix stopped mid-sentence and looked up at Seven. "Does she have a name yet, Seven?"

"A name?" Seven repeated as she looked at them oddly. With everything else, it hadn't dawned on her that the child would require a designation.

"She needs a name, Seven. We just can't keep calling her 'the baby' forever." The Doctor began. "A name is a special thing. It's a part of a person's individually, and as her parents naming her is your responsibility."

Neelix's face lit up at the Doctor's words. "Seven! Are you and the Captain keeping the baby?"

Seven looked over at the Doctor who looked rather sheepish. This was getting out faster then she'd thought it would. What was it Naomi said when this happened? News travels fast on a starship ship. Turning to look at Neelix, who had been overjoyed to find out about her and Kathryn, Seven explained. "It would seem that the child is biologically our daughter."

"Yours and the Captain's?" Neelix asked as he looked at the baby for a long moment. "I didn't know human females could reproduce without a male."

"Yes." Seven answered when he asked if she'd meant her and the Captain. "Then she explained. "There are many medical procedures that will allow same sex partners reproduce."

The Doctor felt the need to elaborate until Seven cut him off.

"Congratulations Seven!" Neelix said with the biggest smile anyone had ever seen on the Talaxian's face just before he suddenly hugged Seven.

"What about the name, Seven?" The Doctor pressed, and then went right into his 'perfect name' monolog. "It should be a strong name. A name with meaning and something she can be proud of. Some parents pick names from literature, myths, or through traditions. Some pick the names of deities who are then said to watch over the child. Some name them after people they know like friends or family."

Seven listened to the Doctor while thinking about what he was saying. She took into account the way she felt about her own designations, and how Kathryn reacted and felt about hers. She ran through a quick list of names she felt she and Kathryn would agree on and then suddenly said, "Gretchen."

"Gretchen?" Both the Doctor and Neelix asked in unison.

Seven nodded. "You said the name should have meaning and give her a strong sense of self. I believe that name will accomplish that."

All three of them looked down at the baby who was squinting back up at them. The Doctor nodded after a moment. "Gretchen it is then." He looked up at Seven and the two shared a knowing, understanding, look. "Shall I make it official?"

"I must speak with the Captain first." Seven replied.

The Doctor nodded. "Of course."

"Well, well, Gretchen are you ready to spend a little quality time with your Uncle Neelix? The Doctor and your Mommy are going to be late for their meeting with your other Mommy if we don't let them go." He smiled and gave her a finger to grab as he added. "And we don't want to make Captain Mommy angry, no we don't, because that wouldn't be a very smart thing to do."

The Doctor frowned as he handed Gretchen to Neelix. He was enjoying holding her in her newly settled state of mind. He picked up his padds and headed for the door and then stopped when he noticed Seven's hesitation at leaving the child. "We'll be late, Seven."

"We're going to be just fine, Seven. You go on. We'll be waiting for you down in the mess hall." Neelix reassured the new mother.

Seven inched towards the door. "There is a padd on the side of the carrier with her schedule. The Doctor added her formula to the replicator and there are supplies in the bag."

Neelix couldn't keep the smile off his face. "Thank you Seven. Now go. Gretchen and I will be fine."

"Of course." Seven nodded at Neelix and then turned and walked out of sickbay with the Doctor. The two of them headed for the conference room in silence until they reached the turbolift.

The Doctor smiled as the doors closed in front of them. "I think the Captain will be quite touched by the name you chose, Seven."

Seven lifted her brow but then relaxed. "I hope you are right, Doctor."


	8. Chapter 8

The conference room filled quickly with Voyager's senior staff. They all wanted to see what everyone else had and hoped it somehow fit with what they had. Captain Janeway sat at the head of the table and watched as her crew took their seats. She noted that Seven wasn't there yet, and she wondered if she'd had trouble with the baby since Seven was normally one of the first to arrive.

"I take it the Doctor couldn't find anything wrong with the two of you?" Chakotay asked as he looked over at Tom and Harry.

"Nothing new anyway. Harry's still pretty wired, and I think it rubbed off on the Doc." Tom answered with a chuckle in his voice.

Harry shot Tom a look and was about to reply to his friend's jab when Seven and the Doctor finally walked in. The two latecomers quickly took their seats and apologized for their tardiness. Janeway nodded knowingly to them both and then began the meeting.

"It would appear we've found ourselves quite a puzzle whose pieces don't really seem to fit." The Captain began. "We've got the derelict alien ship, the Borg sphere, and now a new piece to add to the puzzle." She paused, taking the moment to look over at Seven, and then addressed the crew again. "It would seem that Seven and I are parents."

Seven stepped in seamlessly. "The Doctor has discovered that the child we found on the sphere is biologically our daughter."

Tom and Harry looked shocked and Tuvok's eyebrow rose. It really didn't surprise either Seven or Kathryn that B'Elanna and Chakotay didn't seem surprised, they were each in their own way their partner's best friend. Once the mumbled questions and confused congratulations had settled, Seven explained what she'd found in the computer core regarding the child. She then explained what she and B'Elanna had found out about the sphere. She told them about the sphere being used as a 'nursery', about the files they'd gotten into, and then about the potential Borg Queen threat.

"So you think that she was creating an heir?" Chakotay asked.

Seven nodded. "That is the current the hypothesis."

"What we still don't know is why she choice to create a child using me and Seven." Janeway added in.

"Captain, if I may?" Tuvok said. When he got a nod from Janeway he went on. "You have on several occasions prevailed in your conflicts with the Borg Queen. Seven has proved to be a fascination for her in that she finds Seven to be unique."

"Are you suggesting that maybe she sees me as some kind of equal?" Janeway asked her oldest friend and second officer.

The Vulcan nodded. "She has been known for searching out an equal in the past."

Janeway nodded. "Jean-Luc Picard. But why not just use him to create a child?"

"Maybe she isn't into guys." Tom blurted out. Every set of eyes in the room was suddenly on him and it made him blush a little. "What?"

Ignoring Tom's remark Tuvok went on. "The Queen that Captain Picard faced and ultimately destroyed clearly isn't the one we have been dealing with."

"Who's to say the Queen we have now isn't somehow tied to Picard." B'Elanna tossed out. "We don't know how Queens are made or chosen or whatever."

Everyone looked to Seven who simply said, "I was unaware of there being Queen until our first encounter with her. So I am unaware of the process of how secession works."

What Tuvok said made sense. She had gone toe to toe with the Queen and she'd come out on top, and she had done so with Seven's help.

"The Borg strive for perfection." Tuvok continued. "The Queen seeks perfection, she is, in her own mind, perfection. A child created from the genetic material from someone she saw as an equal, and someone she saw as being unique, with her influence…"

Tom shivered at the idea. "That's a scary thought. A Borg Queen who's part Captain Janeway, part Seven and raised by the current Queen?"

Harry nodded in agreement. "Seriously, if the Captain where the Borg Queen forget it, just assimilate me now."

Janeway couldn't help but grinned. "I think I'm flattered." After sharing a smile with the two young men Janeway got the meeting back on track. "Whatever the reasoning for her creation the baby is here and we can expect that the Queen will want her back."

"There is still no sign of Borg activity in the area." Tuvok said as he looked down at the padd in his hand. "That however can change at any moment given their ability to appear suddenly anywhere through a trans-dimensional rift."

Janeway nodded. "Lets stay at yellow alert for now and continue to run scans of the area. Now, about what killed those ships and the people and Borg aboard them."

"After speaking to the Captain in regards to the unknown toxic gas that Lieutenant Paris and Ensign Kim found on the alien ship, I began to look at the logs regarding the drones bio-status." Seven paused as she pressed a button on her padd sending a file to the screen on the wall. A line of data scrolled up the screen as she spoke. "I found an unknown toxin in the logs. It seemed to have hit every drone at once. How it did this is unknown."

"It went through the ship's collective in a matter of moments." B'Elanna added. "But the toxin isn't what shut the sphere down."

"Then what did?" Chakotay asked.

"The drones." B'Elanna answered. "It was their last dying act."

Seven elaborated. "Once they realized the toxin was moving through their systems they performed a system wide shut down to prevent the toxin from spreading throughout the Collective."

"The maturation chamber had it's own systems." Janeway noted as she looked at the screen. "A fail safe to keep the baby safe if anything were to happen to the rest of the ship."

Seven nodded. "It was a fail safe."

"I've been looking over the information that Ensign Kim was able to bring me from the alien ship." The Doctor began. "It would appear that the toxin that killed both crews was created on that ship."

"The Slayer." Tom added. "From what we were able to find out, the ship was called the Slayer and the people on it were the Gortortians."

"So not the Brunali again?" B'Elanna asked.

"There are other people out there who want the Borg dead." Tom reminded his wife. "Hell didn't the Enterprise even try cooking up a virus once?"

Janeway nodded. "They did but Picard didn't follow through based on moral issues."

"Guess the Gortortians didn't have any moral issues." Harry said. "That place was horror scene."

Tom nodded his agreement to that statement before adding, "The ship's logs state that they've spent the last ten years perfecting the gas compound and hunting down Borg to test it out on."

"So they developed a gas that could kill the Borg. They got it onto the sphere and wiped out all the drones. The baby was uninfected because the maturation chamber kept her safe. So now the question is, what happened to them?" Chakotay asked.

"Best guess," B'Elanna said as she sat forward after looking over all the notes on her padd. "Someone goofed."

Janeway picked up her padd and looked over the detailed information. "That's one hell of a goof. Doctor, is there a threat to anyone if we send another away team?"

"No," The Doctor replied. "I've examined both Lieutenant Paris, and Ensign Kim, and I checked the biofilters from the away team who went to the Borg sphere. All were clean."

"Then I want you three," Janeway began as she looked at Tom, Harry, and the Doctor, "to go back to the Slayer and find out more. Maybe if we're more careful with the gas we can use it to our advantage." The three men nodded their heads. "Seven, B'Elanna, keep working on those Borg files. Any and all information at this point, the more we know about everything and anything Borg the better. The rest of you, I want Voyager ready for any unwanted guests who might show up to the party."

B'Elanna, Seven, Tuvok, and Chakotay all nodded their heads and Janeway dismissed them. Most of them filed out of the room quickly and headed off to their perspective assignments; Seven and Janeway however lingered behind.

At first neither knew what to say but after several lingering seconds Kathryn began, "Seven, about the baby…"

"Gretchen." Seven informed her as she moved to stand in front of the older woman.

Janeway blinked and then smiled a lopsided smile. "Gretchen?"

Seven suddenly felt nervous. "The Neelix asked if she had a name and then the Doctor went into his monolog about picking the perfect name. He said it should be a strong name with a positive connection to where she comes from and where she is going. Your mother's name came to mind. I hope you're not up set with me for choosing without you."

Her response was to kiss Seven quickly but firmly. When she pulled back from her young lover she held one of Seven's hands in her own. "I think it's a wonderful name, Annika." She replied with a bright beaming smile. She was truly touched by the gesture and was finding it hard to keep tears from her eyes. "Humans often give their children middle names as well, Annika. We could name her after your mother too."

"No." Seven stated flatly. She still had mixed emotions regarding her own parents. It was because of them she'd been assimilated at six years of age. Her emotions towards her parents were one of the reasons she preferred not to use her human name. The only person who had truly connected to Seven on that deep a human level was Kathryn, which is way only Kathryn called her Annika. Well, almost the only person, her aunt called her by name as well but that's because the woman had only known her as the small six year old girl who loved strawberries so much.

Janeway licked her lips before biting her bottom one for a moment. "Ok. Then what about Irene?"

Seven blinked. She found it a little unnerving but also very comforting when Kathryn did that. She thought for a moment and nodded. From what she'd seen of her aunt through the communiqués the woman was kind and Seven was fond of her. "That is acceptable."

"Then it's settled." Janeway smiled a little. She was feeling overwhelmed again but in a good way. There was something almost thrilling in giving your child a name. It made everything seem that much more real.

"You wished to speak of Gretchen?" Seven asked as a way of reminding Kathryn of how this conversation had started.

Janeway nodded. "I wanted to see how you were doing dealing with all of this."

"I am," Seven started and then paused to think. "Overwhelmed."

"You and me both." Janeway admitted as she looked up into Seven's eyes. "I'm sorry for running out on you both earlier."

"You were feeling trapped." Seven said as she lightly squeezed Kathryn's hand since her lover was holding her meshed hand.

Kathryn shook her head. "No, Annika, not trapped, scared. I don't know how to be someone's mother, no one does at first, not really but most people get months at least to figure it out before it happens. Most people have some knowledge that it's going to happen."

"We will adapt." Seven reassured her lover. "Our daughter needs her mothers."

The smile on Kathryn's face was huge and bright. "I like the sound of that. Our daughter."

Seven returned that bright smile as she reached up with her free hand to caress Kathryn's pale faintly freckled cheek. The two women spent a few more stolen moments together before going their separate ways. Seven headed down to the cargo bay to work while the Captain returned to her place on the bridge. That brief chance to reconnect with each other helped them both to move on and prepare to face the next level of this sudden change in their lives. It would be a massive adjustment but they both felt stronger knowing the other was just as ready and willing as they other.


	9. Chapter 9

After spending about an hour and half on the bridge Captain Janeway making sure her people were ready for whatever might come their way, she decided to keep the promise she made to Seven and headed towards the mess hall to check on the baby and Neelix. She was pleasantly surprised when she stepped inside the mess hall, the sight before her causing her to smile. Naomi Wildman, Voyager's first child, was reading to the baby as she sat on the floor next to the baby carrier. Watching Naomi, Janeway could feel the spike of fear she'd felt when she'd heard about Samantha Wildman's pregnancy, the extra weight of burden that came with knowing she'd be responsible for the safety of a child aboard her ship, but she also remembered the huge amount affection and pride that washed through the ship when the little girl was born. Janeway walked over to the two girls quietly and sat in a chair near them. She didn't want to disturb the story, but after a few more stolen moments Naomi finally looked up from her book and smiled at the Captain.

"Oh hello, Captain." Naomi greeted brightly. "I hope it's ok that I was reading to your baby. Neelix needed to start dinner for the crew and I said I'd read to her till he got back."

It was more then a little odd hearing Naomi call the baby hers, but Janeway didn't show it. Now that Neelix knew the truth the news would soon be all over the ship. Janeway knew she'd have to work on something official to tell the crew, not to meant Starfleet. "I think it's wonderful that you're reading to her. Babies like to be read too and it helps them to learn to like reading for themselves as they get older."

Naomi beamed at the thought of helping the baby to become smart. "She's really cute and really little. Neelix said her name was Gretchen, that's a nice name I like it, we can call her GeeJay for short, you know cause her name's Gretchen Janeway, G. J."

Janeway laughed softly as she reached down to touch the baby who was now staring up at her. "Geejay huh? I think that could work and it'll help when we get back to Earth, because my mother's name is Gretchen too, so we'll have a way to tell them apart."

Naomi was delighted that the Captain liked the nickname and practically bounced to her feet. "She's lucky to have you and Seven as her moms cause you'll be good at it." She told the Captain before adding. "Well, I have homework to finish. Can I come read to GeeJay again soon?"

"Of Course you can, Naomi." Janeway said with a warm smile. "Thank you for keeping an eye on her."

"You're welcome." The half Human half Ktarian girl replied before giving the Captain a quick hug and then skipping out of the mess hall.

Janeway blinked at the hug but then smiled. She really did adore Naomi. The girl was so sweet and incredibly bright, and brave. It wasn't easy to live on starship, and it certainly wasn't easy living on one that was lost so far from home. Looking down at her daughter Kathryn knew that it wasn't going to be easy for her either. Not only did Gretchen have to deal with being on Voyager, but she also had to deal with being the Captain's daughter and being partly Borg. That was an awful lot to ask a child to deal with. But then she was a Janeway and Janeway's were a pretty touch lot. Reaching down Kathryn lifted her daughter from the carrier and snuggled her in her arms. "You're grandmother is going to burst when she hears about you."

She looked into the baby's ice blue eyes and gently caressed her face with her fingertips as if she were memorizing every little perfect inch of her. Then she put her feet on the coffee table, unwrapped the baby and laid the baby on her thighs so she could look over every other inch of her; her nose, her ears, her hands, her tiny little toes, she was perfect, a tiny little wonder that was hers and Seven's. Leaning foreword Kathryn Janeway place a kissed, for the first time, on her daughter's forehead.

Neelix walked up behind the Captain as he wiped his hands on his apron. He noticed her talking to Naomi and had decided to give the woman some time alone with the baby once Naomi had gone. It was a sight to see that was for sure; the mighty Star Fleet Captain and the tiny infant who so clearly belonged to her. "Ahh Captain. I hear there are congratulations to be offered."

"Thank you, Neelix" The Captain replied, still looking at the baby who was once again testing out her physical limits by stretching and flexing out in her little limbs not that she wasn't confined to a swaddled blanket or bio-suit.

Neelix stood there and smiled as he looked down at the baby and her mother. His smile was warm when he noticed what looked like tears in the Captain's blue-gray eyes. He said nothing, he simply stood there feeling blessed to witness such a private moment between his very private Captain and her child.

Janeway finally swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat as she looked down at her daughter, and then paused until she knew her voice would not betray the sudden wave of emotion she felt. "Will you be able to look after her a little longer, Neelix?"

"Of course, Captain, as long as you need." Neelix said as he went to get the Captain a cup of coffee.

Neither one said anything for a long time after Janeway had taken the coffee from Neelix, each lost in their own thoughts, and then finally Janeway just had to ask. "Neelix, this blanket looks oddly familiar."

"It's one of Seven's bodysuits. It's been working wonders at keeping her relaxed."

Janeway laughed. "Well that was creative."

As gently as she could Janeway placed the child back in her carrier and quickly gave her the pacifier that was clipped to the side of the blanket when she began to fuss. She looked down at the baby as she lifted the carrier from the floor to an empty table and smiled while she rewrapped Seven's bodysuit around her. She then picked up her coffee mug and turned to Neelix. "The Borg will come after us in order to reclaim her. At the first sign of trouble I want you to take her to my quarters, and I want you armed. Once you're there Tuvok will place a security shield around the cabin."

Neelix nodded. "Of course, Captain. Her safety is my top priority; in fact I'm pretty sure it's the whole crews'. Well, for those of us who know, the rest when they find out."

That thought warmed her heart in such away that Janeway couldn't help but give the small man a bright smile as she squeezed his shoulder.

The Delta Flyer hovered near the Slayer on autopilot while Tom, Harry and the Doctor roamed around the larger ship looking for more clues. Tom and Harry showed the Doctor the room with the Borg parts and the Doctor told them that it looked as if they had tested the compound of the gas on living Borg. There were reels of assimilation tubing stacked three or four reels high. This would have prevented the drones from injecting anyone with nanoprobes or accessing the ship's computer. Effectively they'd defanged the cobra before experimenting on it.

"So they knew how to cut the drones off from the Collective." Harry said as they went deeper into the room which they found out was a part of a maze of rooms.

The Doctor nodded. "That isn't surprising. We did the same thing after all."

"Yeah but we gave back a life." Tom said as he shined his wrist lamp onto what looked like a small sealed chamber. "We didn't cut them off just to kill them."

"They're Borg, Tom." Harry said in a way that seemed to sting a little.

The Doctor looked at Harry with a hard stare. "As were Seven and Icheb once upon a time"

"Borg or not Harry," Tom said as he approached what was clearly a gas chamber. "This was just cruel. We know from Seven's experience that a Borg cut off from the Collective mind for to long will start to remember their former lives. How many of these drones had reverted while they were being gased?"

Harry swallowed hard. He felt bad for what he'd said now. "I didn't think of that."

The three men continued to walk though the ship gathering information until they came to a room full of small gray canisters. The Doctor scanned the room first and then when he felt it was safe he allowed the other two in. They scanned the canisters carefully finding most of them still full.

"I think I found B'Elanna's goof." Tom said as he scanned a canister. "This one has a small crack in it and it's completely empty."

"It's also right under an environmental vent." Harry said pointing to the steel vent behind Tom's head. "Gas leaks into the air system, spreads throughout the ship, kills the people who created it without their knowledge."

"Crew's dead, ship's heavily damaged, no one to repair it and it's left dead in the water." Tom added.

"They targeted the biological side of the Borg rather then the technological." The Doctor said with a shook of his head as he held out a small, easily concealed, black canister and what appeared to be a valve tap. "It would never have taken out the Collective and in their obsession they ended up destroyed themselves." The Doctor very carefully collected some sampled before saying, "This could be a very powerful weapon if it feel into the wrong hands."

Harry looked at all the left over containers and then at the Doctor. "Then we can't let this ship just float here. Who knows who might find it next? If the ship were to be destroyed would it cause any problems?"

"Do you mean would the release of all this gas harm passing ships?" The Doctor asked in return to Harry's question. "No. An explosion would burn away the gas."

"Then I say we get the heck out of here and tell Captain Janeway to fire away." Tom added.

"Excellent suggestion Mister Paris." The Doctor said.

As they three men made their way back to the Delta Flyer Harry couldn't stand the eeriness so he decided to break the silence. "I still can't believe that the Captain and Seven have a baby together."

Tom laughed. "Man I thought being raised by Admiral Paris was hard. Can you imagine what being the daughter of Captain Janeway and Seven of Nine is going to be like?"

"That little girl is going to be under a lot of pressure." Harry agreed. "But then again the Captain was raised by an Admiral so she understands what it's like."

"Yeah." Tom agreed. He was planning on using his own knowledge of being an Admiral's son when it came to raising his own child. He was going to think about what his dad would do and then do the opposite. "I bet she has one hell of a temper."

Harry laughed.

As soon as Tom, Harry, and the Doctor returned and reported what they'd found out, Janeway agreed that the ship needed to be destroyed. With B'Elanna and Seven's help they figured out a way to kill two birds with one stone.

Seven, B'Elanna, and three security officers materialized on the darkened Borg sphere. The two women and their escort moved though the sphere carefully as they headed for the main controls with the tools they'd need to get the sphere moving again.

"Are you sure this is a good idea? Won't the Collective know the moment this thing goes back online?" B'Elanna asked as she walked along side Seven.

"I will disable all systems that could pose a threat to our goal." Seven said as she pointed to a green and black section of panels and control screens.

They walked towards the area Seven had pointed out, steeping over the bodies that had been left behind. The smell was making B'Elanna sick to her stomach and for a moment she wished that she hadn't agreed to this. She tried not to look down as she tried to keep up with Seven but the toe of her boot smacked into something. When sheshined her wrist lamp on it she found a small black canister. "Looks like the ones the Doc described."

Seven looked at the canister and then at the body it had been near. It had come from one of the half assimilated humanoids. "They sacrificed themselves."

"Got the Borg to take notice of their ship, a few of them allowed themselves to be brought over, and while they were being assimilated they released the gas." B'Elanna added with a shake of her head.

Seven only nodded and walk on towards the control room. She went right to work on disconnecting everything but what they needed to set a course and engage engines. B'Elanna watched as she stood as close as she could to Seven with out getting in the way. She hated the unnerving feelings she got from being on these ships. She'd been assimilated once in her life and that was once to many. Deciding that she needed a distraction she asked, "Gretchen huh?"

Seven didn't look up from her work. "The Doctor made a point of informing me of the importance of names. I chose a name I felt would fulfill the guide lines." Looking up and over to her friend she added, "Gretchen is the Captain's mother's name as well."

"It's a nice name and a nice gesture." B'Elanna replied with a warm smile. "Have you and the Captain had the chance to talk about all of this yet, Seven?"

"Not in-depth." Seven answered. "We took a few minutes after the staff meeting."

B'Elanna rolled her eyes. Even when Seven was being emotionally honest, she still made things sound so clinical. "You're going to need more then a few minutes, Seven. Trust me when I say a kid changes everything. It affects your life, her life, your work, her work, and your relationship together."

"Once this situation is more under control I am sure we will continue our discourse on the matter." Seven replied as she injected her assimilation tubules into the interface.

"Good." B'Elanna said as she crossed her arms. "The two of you are a lot less annoying then you use be when you were both single and fighting your feelings."

Seven had moved to another panel, she paused what she was doing to look up at B'Elanna who just gave her a 'what?' look. Seven rolled her eyes.

B'Elanna's eyes were bright at the sight of the eye roll. She'd like to think Seven had gotten that from her but she knew the Captain did it too. Once Seven have her the signal, B'Elanna opened a panel and stared at the components trying to figure out how to hot wire this floating creep show.

"I will go to the navigation controls and set course and engage the timer." Seven informed the other woman.

B'Elanna nodded and watched as Seven went off alone. She wasn't sure this was a good idea and she knew that the Captain wasn't going to like this, but she knew better then to send one of the security officers with her. Seven just had that look on her face that said she didn't want to be slowed down by the limits of non-ex-Brog life forms.

Seven of Nine stood alone in auxiliary control. As she worked a cold shiver raced down her spin and for a moment she thought she wasn't alone. She looked up from her screen and looked around the small area. She was alone, so she went back to work. A few more minutes passed and then for a moment she thought she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Lieutenant Torres?" Seven asked aloud. There was no one there. Seven looked around again and actually stepped out into the hall and looked around. She could see all three of the security officers and B'Elanna just where she had left them. Seven began to feel uneasy but she went back to work on navigation control. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was there with her but she ignored it. When she had the course set she reached for her comm. badge to alert B'Elanna to bring the systems online but stopped when she thought she'd heard someone behind her.

Seven became defensive as she turned around. "Who is there?" She ordered. No one replied and Seven went for her phaser. She stopped short when a figure stepped into the room.

"Easy Seven it's just me." B'Elanna said as she stepped in. "Are you ok?"

"Yes." Seven said curtly. "You may bring the systems online now." Seven added coolly as she forced her heart to stop racing. "Once the systems are online I will start the timer."

B'Elanna looked at the ex-Borg for a long moment before asking again, "Are you sure you're ok? You look a little spooked."

"I am fine." Seven told her again and then walked past her and back towards the other room. "I just do not... like, being on Borg vessels."

B'Elanna nodded. "You and me both, Seven, so lets get this done so we can call the boys and then get back to Voyager."

The second away team of Harry and Tom made their way once again though the halls of the Slayer. The door to the bridge was just as they had left it and the two men had no trouble getting in.

"Do you think you'll be able to get the warp core going from here?" Tom asked as he made his way to the helm.

Harry looked for and found the engineering station. "Well I'm no B'Elanna Torres but I think I can muddle through. We don't really need warp just impulse."

Tom laughed. "Damn right you're no B'Elanna."

Harry just rolled his eyes as he bent down to hook up the power pack they'd brought with them. He pulled the panel from the wall and started hooking in the temporary power jump when something in the corner caught his attention. He crawled over to the little black box with the blinking red light and scanned it. "I think I found out why no one can beam onto the bridge." He called out after several minutes.

Tom walked over to where Harry was and knelt down next to him. "What is it?"

"Some kind of shielding device. I'll see if I can remove it so we can take it back with us. Maybe B'Elanna can have a look."

"Looks like there's one in each corner." Tom replied after looking around the bridge.

Harry nodded as he removed the one he'd found. After placing it in his kit he went back to getting the engines back on line. It wasn't as easy as he had hoped. There were more firewalls to get past and odd-looking programs to find back doors to. "Man these people were paranoid." Harry said after nearly ten minutes of working. "I think I got the computers up. I'm starting on the warp core."

"I got helm control. Once you have full power back I'll start setting the course." Tom replied. While he waited on Harry he found and removed the other little black boxes to take back with them.

"I wonder how the other two are doing over on the sphere?" Harry asked as he worked.

Tom frowned. "I really wish B'Elanna wouldn't agree to go on away teams like that."

Harry laughed. "She's pregnant Tom not helpless. Besides I don't think that Seven would allow her to get hurt. It's taken years but I'm pretty sure they've stopped hating each other."

"I guess they have become friends in their own wired kinda way." Tom smirked.

Once he'd been able to get past the safety programs, Harry had no real trouble getting things working again. "Ok, we have a steady power flow and engines are up and running."

"Course is set. Setting the timer now. All we need is word from the girls that they're ready and we can head back to the ship and out of dodge." Tom said from the helm as he looked over his shoulder at Harry. "What are you doing?"

"Downloading more information from their computer." Harry replied without looking up.

"Why?" Tom asked.

Harry shrugged. "They have some defensive programs and things I thought maybe we could analyze and adapt for Voyager."

Tom laughed. "You're such a geek." Harry looked up and was about to say something but the sound of Tom's comm. badge stopped him. Tom smiled as he pressed the gold and silver badge on his chest. "Go ahead B'Elanna."

"We're ready over here Tom. Set the timer for fifteen minutes and get yourselves out of there."

Tom nodded as if his wife could see him. "Fifteen got it." Tom set the timer and looked over at Harry. "Ready?" Harry nodded. "Timer starting... Now."

B'Elanna heard Tom's mark and looked over at Seven. "Start the timer."

Seven nodded and set the timer. As she pressed her hand to the proper control and pressed in the proper command she heard a whisper._'So much like them.'_. Seven looked over at B'Elanna. "Did you say something, Lieutenant?"

B'Elanna looked at Seven oddly and then shook her head. "No. Why did you hear something?"

"Apparently not." Seven replied before looking back down at her screen. "Timer set. We should return to the ship." Seven looked over her shoulder as she joined the rest of the team at the beam out site before tapping her comm. badge. "Seven to Voyager. Five to beam out."

Captain Janeway and the rest of the bridge crew all watched as Tom, Harry and Seven walked onto the bridge. Janeway was glad that the away teams had made it back and that at least part of this was about to be over. "Time?" Janeway asked.

Seven looked down at her counsel and replied. "Eight minutes thirty-seven seconds."

"Tom move us to a safe distance." The Captain ordered.

Tom nodded and set a course that would take the ship out of the area as quickly as possible. Once the ship was out of range Harry put the view of the two other ships on the screen and zoomed in. He also sent the image down to B'Elanna who was watching from engineering. The crew of Voyager watched in silence as the nacelles on the Slayer lit up and as the sphere began to move slowly.

The two ships moved into their positions and then all at once jumped into a quick movement that sent them at each other. The crew watched as the two ships plowed into each other head on and then exploded into a mass of bright blue and orange partials and bits of metals.

"Scan the area and make sure the gas has burned away and check to make sure there is nothing for the Borg to find." Janeway ordered.

It took a few minutes but the reports came back that all was clear. Janeway congratulated everyone on their fine work and then ordered Tom to set course back to the Alpha quadrant warp four. She didn't want to wait around any longer. If something, or someone, was going to come after them they could do it while Voyager was once again heading home.


	10. Chapter 10

Even though the end of Alpha shift had come and gone Janeway and most of the others remained on the bridge until they were sure they weren't being followed and that there was no sign of the Borg. Even after the others had left, replaced by the Beta shifters, the Captain remained. She had to make sure the ship was safe, that her newborn daughter was safe. When she finally did leave the bridge she felt tired and couldn't think of anything but getting back to her quarters and relaxing. She smiled a little in the turbolift when her thoughts of spending time alone with Seven now included the baby.

Seven had been working on the Borg files at the computer on the desk in the quarters she was now sharing with the Captain, but had gotten up and walked over to Gretchen when she'd begun to fuss. Seven looked down at the child oddly. She had done everything the Doctor had shown her, changed her, feed her, burped her, and yet she still fussed. Finally Seven picked the child up and the moment she did Gretchen began to coo.

"Perhaps this is one of those moments where the Doctor said you'd simply want to be held." Seven said as she sat on the couch with the child in her arms. As she held her daughter Seven looked her over carefully. She took in everything about her and smiled softly as she brushed the faintest hint of freckles that dusted the baby's nose and on her cheeks just under her eyes. The Doctor had removed one of Gretchen's unnecessary implants and then placed her under a sun lamp to prevent jaundice. The exposure to the ultraviolet rays had triggered Gretchen's inherited predisposition towards freckles, a trait she got from Kathryn, and Seven adore it.

Janeway walked into the room and stopped suddenly at the sight that greeted her. A bright smile pulled on her lips as she watched Seven sitting there with Gretchen. It was an amazing sight to take in. The former drone who'd had so much trouble embracing her humanity, her emotions, and now here she was cuddling and humming softly to their daughter. As she watched Seven with their baby she knew she had a lot to be grateful for, and a lot of people to be grateful too. She hadn't ever felt this good about her life in all her life.

"Should I be jealous?" Janeway asked as she unzipped her uniform jacket and slide it off before walking over to the couch.

Seven looked up and smiled at the sight of the older woman. "Absolutely."

Janeway sat down next to Seven and reached out to trace Gretchen's jaw line which caused the baby to turn towards her. She was only a few days old and yet there was so much curiosity and so much innocence and light in her eyes. "She has your eyes, Annika."

"She will have red hair." Seven replied. "And she is already developing freckles."

Kathryn looked closely at her daughter and chuckled softly. "Oh, I am so sorry." She told Gretchen as she curled up beside Annika.

Seven looked puzzled. "Why are you apologizing?"

"It's not easy being a redheaded kid with freckles." Kathryn explained, her eyes twinkling and an odd grin on her face. "I was teased pretty bad when I was younger. You have no idea how relived I was when my hair darkened and it became more auburn then red."

Seven thought about this for a few moments and then said, "She will also face scorn for being Borg."

Kathryn frowned as she nodded. "Most likely, but we'll help her through it. She won't be alone, Annika, she'll have us and Icheb, and the rest of her family." She smiled as she watched Gretchen startle herself with the discovery of her fist, which had sudden come into her line of sight. "This is still so surreal."

"Are you happy about this situation, Kathryn?" Seven asked as her lover took the baby from her arms. She turned her head so she could watch Kathryn with their child.

"I am." Kathryn admitted. "It's not something I ever expected but now that it's happened I'm so glad it has."

Seven nodded as she reached out and brushed at Kathryn's hair. "You will be a good mother."

Kathryn's smile was bright. "So will you."

The couple sat on the couch for a while longer talking about this unexpected yet wonderful change in their lives. There were deeper things they needed to talk about, but neither wanted to darken the moment. Finally after awhile longer Seven said, "It is late. We should prepare her for sleep."

"It's a good thing we're use to odd hours and long nights." Kathryn teased as Seven stood and went about preparing a bath for the baby. "Baby's this age don't sleep through the night."

"We will adapt." Seven replied with a slight smirk on her lips. The emotions Seven felt as she and Kathryn went about tending to their child confused her. She knew that what had happened with One was not likely to happen to Gretchen but the possibility was there, and Gretchen was her child, hers and Kathryn's so she wouldn't have to give her up the way she did with Mezoti, Azan, and Rebi, but she was still afraid of feeling that pain again. One of the hardest things Seven had to learn about being human was that love often came with the risk of pain, and it took her awhile to realize that the risk was worth it. It was worth it in loving Kathryn and it was worth it in loving their child.

Kathryn laughed as Gretchen splashed water onto Seven bodysuit. "I think she's trying to get your attention, Annika."

"I do believe a bath is more successful when you keep the water in the basin, Gretchen." Seven told the child softly as she smiled warmly at her.

After they finished Gretchen's bath, cleaned up the water, dressed her, and got her to fall asleep Seven and Kathryn once again settled onto the couch together. Neither was sure where to start or what to talk about. They'd agreed that Gretchen was a gift and that they were blessed to have her in their lives. But her existence brought up a lot of questions, concerns, and some darker emotions. It was Kathryn who finally broke the silence,

"Annika."

"Yes Kathryn?" Seven replied softly.

"I think it had to happen when Tuvok, B'Elanna, and I were assimilated on the Borg cube." Kathryn said in a soft voice laced with the emotion of those particular memories. "I can remember being with the Borg Queen, and the events that happened with her, but I have no idea what was going on with my body."

Seven nodded. She'd been thinking about when the Queen could have obtained their genetic material. She just couldn't figure out if it was a spur of the moment choice or if somehow it had all been planned out. The Queen's desire to shut down unimatrix zero was genuine, but could she have used the opportunity to draw them in? "That seems the logical time." Seven looked down and watched as Janeway took her hand into her own. Such small hands yet such amazing strength. "I was not aware of my surroundings while I regenerated in the Queen's chamber." Seven said softly. "I believe that was the logical time for them to take what they needed from me. Before my time with her I would have been an irrelevant drone. I only became of interest to her after my liberation."

"Do you think Tuvok could be right?" Janeway asked as she turned to look at Seven. Her eyes pleading for answers she was afraid to uncover but needed to know.

Seven nodded. "We are imperfect as individuals, yet we have prevailed time and time again against her. We have done so together and we have done so for each other. A child of ours raised and breed by her would be..."

"Harry was right." Janeway said as a shiver ran up her spin. "That is a very scary thought."

The room fell silent as both women tended to their personal thoughts. The emotions were raw and overwhelming, but being in each other's presence helped to quill the storms. After talking for a bit longer the two women decided to try and get some sleep. Seven would get up with the child since Kathryn needed to sleep more then she did. As they settled into bed Seven had a sudden thought. "We delivered our own child and did not know it."

"Fate is a strange thing, Annika." Janeway replied just as softly.


	11. Chapter 11

Seven of Nine lied beside her lover in a growingly restless sleep. She'd been up with Gretchen twice so far but this time it wasn't Gretchen who caused Seven to stir. The content happy feeling she'd felt as she drifted off after she and Kathryn had talked, and after each time she'd gotten up to feed their child, had begun to fade. Now, even in her sleep, Seven could tell her happiness was in danger. She hadn't felt these kinds of phantoms in her sleep for a long time and even asleep Seven could feel herself become angry. How dare She keep interfering in her life and how dare She keep invading her mind!

"_So much like them. Sentiment. Desire. Emotional Love. Physical Love. You disappoint me, Seven of Nine."_

Seven jerked in her sleep as she tried to escape the voice in her mind. There were no images in her dream, only sound, only Her voice. Her presence. Seven jerked again trying to wake her self but something cold kept her in place.

"_I know you can still hear me, Seven of Nine. You may be losing more and more of your perfection, but the link we share still remains." _

Seven began to mumble in her sleep as she attempted to talk back to the voice. She trashed around on the bed waking her lover whose arms tightened around her, called to her, and yet she could not wake up.

"_I'm coming for what is mine, Seven. I created her. She belongs to me. You will not be able to keep her. You are imperfect, Seven, flawed. You will not be able to protect her. I will have her. I will have you all. Resistance is futile, Seven of Nine." _

"Annika?" Kathryn said a little more firmly as she tried to wake her lover from her dreams. "Seven! Wake up."

Seven awoke with a start and gasping for air. She would have bolted upright if not for Kathryn's strong arms around her, holding her, cradling her so close she could hear the other woman's heart beating. She allowed Kathryn to sooth her as her own heart slowed it's frightened pace. It had been a long time since she'd felt that presence in her mind, and for a moment she wondered if she would ever truly be rid of it.

Kathryn brushed damp strands of hair from Seven's face as she looked into the younger woman's frightened and angry blue eyes. "It was only a nightmare, sweetheart. Wasn't it?"

Seven shook her head. No, this was not simply a nightmare; this was a warning. "She is coming to reclaim Gretchen. She is coming for Voyager."

Janeway looked deeply into Seven's blue eyes, stroking her damp blonde hair, and then she understood. "We'll be ready for her Annika. I wouldn't allow her to take you from me then and I won't let her take you or our daughter now."

Something about hearing her lover call the child their daughter seemed to steel Seven somehow. Seven nodded as she rested her head on Janeway's chest, catching her breath, and fortifying her thoughts. "We don't have long."

"We'll be ready for her." Kathryn told her in that tone of voice that meant the petite woman would take on the whole galaxy and she'd win.

"Resistance is not futile." Seven whispered. She knew that Kathryn and the crew would do everything in their power to protect Gretchen, but she also knew that the Queen would not be so easily defeated this time. Seven also felt, for the first time, just how personal this all was. Since her liberation Seven had retained a sort of cultural respect for the Borg, sort of how Kathryn held onto her Irish heritage, Seven had held onto the Borg. Seven never harbored them ill will nor had she even truly hated them, but now things were different. Now she knew without any doubt that she would dismantle the whole Collective piece by cybernetic piece if that's what it took to keep Kathryn and Gretchen safe.

The next morning Janeway filled her senior staff in on Seven's nighttime visitor and they began making plans. They had been working on some new weapons, and though it was risky to test them out now, it was a chance they had to take. She assigned Tuvok and Chakotay to getting the new torpedoes ready for us, while asking B'Elanna and Harry to work on getting the new shielding online. Seven was assigned to help both teams as best she could. Neelix would remain in the captain's quarters with Gretchen. The cabin would be shielded and guards would be posted. Finally Janeway and the Doctor would be working on the pathogen they kept up their sleeves.

After the meeting Seven went to check on her daughter before setting about her tasks. In between working with each team she made a few stops of her own. The whole ship was abuzz, every officer and every crewmen preparing for what was to come. The looks that Seven got from passing crew touched her heart. They would defend her child as surely as they'd defend their own.

On the bridge Janeway was checking in with Tuvok about his progress. There was a deep knot of fear in the pit of her stomach that always appeared when they were just about to face off against something, but this was different. This was the first time she'd be facing danger with her daughter on board and that changed the whole game plan. It made her all that much more fierce and determined. After she finished with Tuvok Janeway made her way to engineering and then to sickbay. She was surprised to find Seven there with Gretchen and speaking with the doctor. "Is everything alright?"

"Everything is fine." Seven said as she gave Janeway a reassuring look. "The Doctor was just following up on the procedure Gretchen had done yesterday." She gave the doctor a meaningful look before stepping close enough to Kathryn on her way out to brush her lover's hand with her own.

The Doctor nodded.

Kathryn smiled down at her daughter before placing a kiss on the baby's forehead. "You'd better get her back to the cabin, Seven."

Seven nodded. The two women shared a look of love and reassurance and then Seven slipped out of sickbay. She made sure Gretchen was safe before checking in with B'Elanna. Then she returned to her own work.

After checking in with the Doctor, Janeway headed back to the bridge. She'd just stepped off the turbo lift when the ship went to red alert. "Report!"

"Borg ship, Captain." Tuvok reported. "It just dropped out of transwarp."

The tension on the bridge was smothering as the view screen showed what they were up against. It was a single diamond shaped ship that seemed to just dangle there in space before them, forcing them to stop.

"We're being scanned." Harry reported from his position at ops.

Moments later the bridge watched in helpless shock as their captain was suddenly engulfed in the green partials of light that was a Borg transport beam. Several seconds passed as the shock washed over them, but then Chakotay snapped out of it and quickly took command. "Tuvok? What the hell just happened and where the hell is the Captain?"

"I am reading one human life sign on the Borg vessel." Tuvok replied.

"Just one?" Chakotay asked, turning to Harry he added, "Seven and the baby?"

"Still on the Voyager, Sir." Harry reported.

"Keep a lock on them, Harry." Chakotay ordered. "Tuvok, get the Captain off that ship!"

Aboard the Queen's ship Janeway found herself standing in the Queen's central chamber. She looked around quickly to see if Seven or the baby were there but she was alone. She hit her comm. badge but of course there was no reply. When she heard the all to familiar sound of machinery suddenly in movement she turned sharply on her heels towards the central alcove. She watched, her blue-gray eyes burning with anger and hate, as the Borg Queen was lowered from the rafters above to join with her cybernetic body.

The Borg Queen smiled a sick and twisted smile. "Hello Captain."

"Your Majesty." Janeway said with as much sarcasm as she could muster.

The Queen circled Janeway slowly while she shimmed into her body like a cat shaking out its fur. "So glad you could join us."

Janeway swallowed against a suddenly dry throat. Her eyes darted around the chamber but they were still alone. "It was an invitation I couldn't say no too."

"I did not want you to miss a moment of this." The Queen said just before titling her head in that odd way that let others know she was issuing a command of some sort. A moment later the Queen began to speak out aloud but she wasn't speaking to Janeway. "Seven." She purred. "You can see who I have, Seven of Nine. Bring me the child or I will assimilate her."

Anger raged inside of Janeway. "She won't do it so you might as well go ahead and assimilate me."

The Queen turned towards Janeway, her voice still that lush, sedative tone as she said, "We will just have to wait and see won't we Captain? Captain, that sounds so formal. We're closer than that now, aren't we Kathryn? After all, I'm going to be raising your child."

Janeway's eyes ever left the other woman as she turned her own body to match the movements of the Queen. She wasn't even trying to hide her emotions behind a mask there was no point. "Why?" She finally asked after several long seconds. "Why have you done this?"

"I seek perfection." The Borg Queen answered as she took several steps closer to Janeway.

"I?" Janeway asked. Her mind was wheeling. She wasn't sure what to do, how to get back to the ship, all she could think of was keeping Seven and Gretchen safe but she couldn't do that from here. "What happened to the royal we?"

The Borg Queen smiled. "I am the we." Stepping closer the Queen raised a hand and caressed Janeway's hair. "You were so lovely as a drone. Such a pity; such a waste."

Janeway jerked away from the Queen's touch. Her skin felt like it wanted to crawl right off her bones every time the other woman got to near. "Answer my question."

"You already know the answer." The Borg Queen replied as she looked into the human's blazing eyes.

The two looked at each other for several seconds before Janeway said, "You're prefect heir?"

Again the Borg Queen smiled. "I am the Borg. I have always been the Borg; I will always be the Borg. I am perfection. Each and every species that is added to the Collective, I take their uniqueness and I add it to that perfection, and in return when I assimilate them I give them the gift of that perfection."

"And people call me arrogant." Janeway quipped.

The Queen continued. "That perfection must always continue. There must always be a Queen. I will live on, the Collective will live on, and how poetic that it will do so through your child. How fitting that humanity will finally fall at the hands of one of their own."

"My daughter will never be your successor!" Janeway barked, her anger rushing to the top. She reached out to strike at the Queen but the Queen grabbed hold of her arm and it was all Janeway could do not to flinch as she hissed, "She will never be one of you."

The look of pleasure on the Queen's face brightened as she said, "I don't know Kathryn, perhaps we should ask Seven of Nine what she thinks, don't you?" The Borg queen moved slowly so that Janeway could see what stood behind her.

Blue-gray eyes went wide as Janeway's mouth opened in a surprised 'oh' as she watched Seven appear in a transport beam holding their baby in her arms. Gretchen was wrapped in a soft pink blanket but Janeway could hear her soft whimpers and see the movement beneath the fabric. "Seven? Seven, no!"


	12. Chapter 12

Seven of Nine had been standing in the captain's quarters holding the baby in her arms when she felt the familiar sensation of being transported. She heard Neelix call out but there was nothing he could do. When she appeared in the Borg Queen's chamber she looked around to find Kathryn, their eyes meeting for a moment before she found herself face to face with the Borg Queen once again.

"Welcome home, Seven." The Borg Queen greeted.

"Leave them alone." Janeway growled. She went to move closer to Seven and their child but suddenly found a force field stopping her.

Seven looked towards Kathryn again before turning her gaze on the Queen. "I will not allow you to have this child."

"You will." The Borg Queen purred. "You will give her to me or you will watch me assimilate your lover. You will give her to me or you will watch as my new drone kills the child."

"That course of action would have no benefit for the Collective." Seven said as she moved away from the Queen but kept her eyes on her. They circled the room with Kathryn in the middle. "Your actions are personal. Clarify."

"Everything I do is for the benefit of the Collective." The Queen replied. "The child is just another way of adding to our perfection."

Seven shook her head. "There is more to this than that."

The Borg Queen smiled. "You're very perceptive, Seven. Yes. There are other reasons for what I have done."

"What are they?" Seven demanded as she kept the baby close to her chest.

The Borg Queen turned to face Janeway. She took several steps closer to the auburn haired woman. They were so close that she knew Janeway could feel her cold metallic breath on her skin. "You stole from me Captain. You raided my ships, scavenged my drones, you seek us out rather then run away from us. You teased me, you tempt me, you tempt fate, those are qualities that will make the child unique." The Queen's voice, which had been soft and seductive as she spoke, suddenly became hard and angry. Her hand shot up and wrapped around Janeway's throat. "You are an imperfect being and yet she choose you every time. You stole her from me. So I took from you."

Janeway looked into the Queen's cold, hard, metallic eyes and suddenly she understood. She gripped at the hand around her throat and just as suddenly as it was there it was gone. "You're jealous." Croaked out in a horse voice as she rubbed her throat.

Anger burned in those metallic eyes. "Jealous of you? Hardly. I am perfection and you are not."

"And yet Seven choose to be human rather then return to the Collective." Janeway replied, her voice low and husky, a lopsided grin on her face. "Seven choose me over you."

The Borg Queen suddenly jerked to face Seven as she yelled, "You could have been Queen!" Then, as if someone flipped a switch, she was calm again and pouring on the maternal charm. "I had chosen you, Seven. You were going to be my successor but you refused. Your corruption runs too deep. So I created the perfect heir." She moved slowly towards Seven and held out her arms. "Give me the child, Seven."

"Seven!" Janeway said from where she was. "Don't!"

Seven looked between the woman she loved and the monster between them. She held the baby a little tighter as she began to cry softly. She looked down at the baby's face and then up at the Queen.

"Choose again, Seven." The Queen taunted. "Give me the child and you and Kathryn and her ship are free too go with my vow to never bother you again. Or refuse and watch as Kathryn is assimilated."

"Try it, bitch." Kathryn called out defiantly.

Seven raised an eyebrow at that. It was so unlike Kathryn to swear.

"You have the design for the womb, Seven. You have the files on how she was created." The Queen continued after deciding to add a little to the emotional charge in the room. "You and Kathryn could have another child. One not tainted by our implants. One who would not be scorned for who she is."

Seven's icy eyes blazed. "My thoughts are my own!"

The Borg Queen smiled. "A mother's concern is universal, Seven." She stepped close to Seven and placed a hand on her cheek. "Give her to me Seven and go with your love with my blessings."

Janeway couldn't understand what she was seeing in Seven's expression. Was she really allowing herself to buy into what the Queen was saying? She knew in that instant what the Queen was doing. No matter what choice Seven made Janeway would pay the price. She would be hurt so deeply that nothing would ever be the same in her life. "Seven. Annika, please, get the baby back to the ship! Please."

For several long moments Seven looked into Kathryn's eyes. She was well aware that the Queen was watching them and that she was taking pleasure from what she was doing to them. Finally, after what felt like an eternity she looked at the Queen. "Send the order to the Collective. Voyager and her crew are never to be assimilated or destroyed. Show me that you mean it, that Voyager will be safe."

The Queen was smiling so brightly it lit up the dark room. She titled her head slightly and then a moment later she said, "It is done."

Seven looked at Kathryn a moment before leaning close to the baby and whispering something to her. When Seven looked up at Kathryn again she said, "I am sorry my Kathryn."

Kathryn watched in horror as Seven gave their child to the Borg Queen. Tears streamed down her pale cheeks as she watched the Queen cradle her daughter her arms. She was in such shock she didn't see the drones closing in on them. Nor did her mind really register that as soon as the Queen's back was to her, Seven turned to a computer on the central alcove and punctured it with her assimilation tubules. Her heart was breaking in her chest and the sound of it falling to pieces drowned out Seven's voice as the tall blonde came towards her. When Seven tried to reach out to her Kathryn pulled away from her. She stared at her lover with such hurt and betrayal in her eyes as she felt the tingle of a transporter beam take hold of her.


	13. Chapter 13

Kathryn Janeway sat alone in a corner booth at Sullivan's Pub looking down into the creamy foam of the dark ale that sat untouched in front of her. Her mind kept going over everything that had happened, every detail, ever action, every word played out in her mind as if they were set on repeat. The entire episode with the Slayer and the Borg Queen and little Gretchen had turned the normally in control captain upside down and inside out. Her mind drifted back to the two derelict ships that fate had placed in their path. As she thought about it, she realized that it really had been as if fate had put them there at just the right moment for her to find the most precious gift life had ever given her.

Then she thought about the Slayer and what its people had taught her. Kathryn could see what obsession could drive people too, and it truly scared her. Those people were so driven by their obsession to destroy the Borg that they destroyed themselves in the process. She wondered if her drive to get her crew home was indeed an obsession that would someday take her ship down the same path.

If the people of the Slayer had shown her obsession, the Borg Queen had shown her what vengeance looked like. The look in the metallic eyes of the Borg matriarch and the smile that had crept onto her face the moment Seven placed the baby in her arms would be forever burned in Kathryn's memory. Her time on the ship also showed Kathryn a side of Seven she hadn't known was there. The young woman on that ship was so far from the woman-child she'd severed from the Collective that it was hard to think of them as the same woman. Seven had given her back Kathryn, she'd given her back her life outside the uniform. She couldn't have wanted more then loving and being loved by Seven, but then Gretchen came into her life. She still wanted to get back to Earth, she owed her people that and she missed her mother and sister and friends, but Gretchen had done something that not even having Seven's love had done. She'd truly turned Voyager into home.

The sound of soft footsteps approaching her table brought Kathryn out of her thoughts and caused her to look up from her glass. Her eyes locked with warm yet icy blue ones and Kathryn watched as Seven slid slowly into the seat across from her. She watched as Seven reached out to touch her hand but stopped, unsure if Kathryn wanted to be touched by her. There was fear and uncertainty in the younger woman's eyes that pulled at Kathryn's heart.

"Are you still angry with me, Kathryn?" Seven asked softly.

Kathryn looked at her lover for a moment and said, "Yes." But then she paused as she saw the dark sadness cross Seven's eyes, and sighed. "No, Annika. No, I'm no longer angry with you. I still wish you had told me of your plans though."

Seven titled her head downward but did not release the gaze she shared with the auburn haired woman across from her. "I would have if it would have been possible, Kathryn. I had to work quickly once I understood what it was she was doing." Seven's hand twitched. She wanted nothing more then to reach out and take Kathryn's hand in her own. "Her original plan was to raise Gretchen, to use her against humanity, and then make us face the fact that it had been our child who'd done it. Us coming upon her changed her plans, it gave her a chance at instant gratification."

A look of disgust crossed Kathryn's face as she recalled the look on the Queens face. Knowing what she knows now about the Borg and their Queen, Kathryn realized just how big an issue they were. It was one thing to think of them as mindless scavengers, feral cybernetic beings savagely assimilating because that's how they survive, but it was something totally different to know that there was someone so cold, so calculating, so manipulative, so sick and disturbed controlling it all. The Borg just became a whole hell of a lot scarier.

Silence grew between the two women as they both stared down at their hands, which each had folded directly in front of themselves on the table. After a few more painfully lingering moments Seven took a deep breath and looked up. "I am sorry I hurt you the way I did, Kathryn."

Kathryn looked up and once again saw unshed tears in Seven's eyes. Blue-gray eyes locked with blue until those tears finally rolled down Seven's cheeks. Kathryn finally reached out and placed her hands over Seven's. "I know you are, Annika. I know you didn't want to hurt me and that what happened needed to play out just the way it did, but it still hurt and it's going to take a little time for that to fade away."

"She needed to see the pain that my actions caused you." Seven looked at Kathryn for a moment. The look on her lover's face as she handed the baby to the Borg Queen haunted Seven and always would.

"What you did isn't going to knock us off her hit list you know." Kathryn warned. "Her promise to leave Voyager alone is worthless."

A very faint smile tugged on Seven's lips. "The sonic pulse that the doll emitted after our departure should have scrambled enough of her circuitry that we shouldn't have to worry about her for a very long time, and the virus I injected into the core will make sure she can never create another child using our genetics. She will never be able to come at us this way again."

"I still can't believe you plotted something so devious, Seven. I think you even impressed Tom." Kathryn said with a little chuckle in her voice. She could finally feel the weight of everything lifting from her heart. Seven's flicker of a smile had been like a flicker of light at the end of a long, dark, cold tunnel; her own small laugh like a warm and comforting blanket.

The tension between them started to melt away and Seven thankfully held tighter to Kathryn's hands. "The sonic pulse had been something B'Elanna and I had been working on with Tuvok's help. The doctor is the one who created the doll that fooled the Queen into believing I was really handing over our child."

"But it was your idea to combine the two." Janeway still couldn't believe what had happened.

When she had seen Seven in sickbay with Gretchen, Seven and the Doctor had been working on creating a doll that was so life like it did it's job in fooling not only the Queen, but Janeway as well. Then she'd gone to B'Elanna and the three of them fit the sonic device into the doll, making it appear as if it were Gretchen's implants. The doll was then injected with Gretchen's genetically marked nanoprobes, while Gretchen herself had been sedated. Seven and B'Elanna then reprogrammed a stasis pod that masked Gretchen's life signs and bio-signature. They'd also used the anti-transport tech from the Slayer as a backup. When the Borg scanned the ship they picked up the doll's nanoprobes rather then Gretchen's hidden bio-signs. When Seven whispered in the baby's ear, she was activating the sonic device by verbal command.

They were both back on Voyager when the device went off. When it did it broke Seven's link with the Queen, causing her to black out. Janeway didn't know any of this until she'd gone down to sickbay with Seven and found Gretchen sleeping in her pod. She'd been so confused and then so angry when she found out the truth that she cut herself off from not only Seven but everyone else involved for a few days. She had even refused to allow Seven to see Gretchen, but once her anger and her hurt faded away she let everyone back in enough to work things out.

Seven didn't say anything as she watched the emotions once again play out in her lover's eyes. She would never truly forgive herself for deceiving Kathryn the way she did. And she knew that what she'd done had caused a fraction, though a minute one, in Kathryn's trust, but they were dealing with all of it. Finally Seven said, "She threatened my collective and I could not allow that. I would destroy them all before I allowed one to harm you or our daughter."

The smile on Kathryn's face grew. "She threatened your family, Annika."

Seven titled her head to the side as her left brow rose. "Is that not what I said?"

The flicker of amusement in Seven's eyes made Kathryn laughed. The two women remained in the booth in the corner of Sullivan's for a little while longer before Seven mentioned that they were going to be late and that the others were waiting for them at the Ox and Lamb.

Janeway nodded and allowed Seven to pull her to her feet. Seven wrapped her arms around the smaller woman as they stood there simply looking at each other for a moment, then she leaned in and kiss Kathryn softly at first, but Kathryn quickly deepened it. When the kiss ended Seven whispered, "I am so…"

Janeway pressed a finger to Seven's lips. "No more apologies, Annika. We put this past us here and now."

Seven nodded. "Agreed." She smiled a little. "Am I permitted to tell you that I love you?"

"For the rest of our lives as long as I get to say it back." Kathryn kissed the younger woman softly.

When they walked into Fair Haven's inn Kathryn smiled as she looked around at the small gathering. Her daughter's arrival made Kathryn realized that these people weren't just her crew, they weren't just her friends; they were her family.

"I hope she wasn't to much trouble, Doctor." Seven said as the Doctor approached them with Gretchen in his arms.

The Doctor smiled. "Of course she wasn't any trouble."

"So why the impromptu party? Not that any of us mind the down time." Tom asked with his boyish smile firmly in place.

Seven reached out and claimed her daughter from the Doctor and then turned to Kathryn before looking at the others. "This month's data pack came this morning."

"We're having a party because the mail came?" Harry asked as he walked over.

A large smile appeared on Chakotay's face as he joined them. "I take it there was good news?"

"Very good news." Kathryn said as she looked down into Gretchen's bright face. She then paused until she had everyone's attention. "After sending in the Doctor's scans as proof, the Federation has sent us our daughter's birth certificate, so it's now official. Seven and I are the proud parents of Gretchen Irene Hansen Janeway. "

The small crowd roared in cheerful congratulations and held their drinks high in a toast to the new family. The party went on happily and exploded once again into happy bursts of cheering when B'Elanna and Tuvok agreed to be Gretchen's godparents.

"Clearly a well thought out way of balancing the influences the two will have on the child." The Doctor teased. "She can learn to lose her temper logically."

Tuvok didn't react to the Doctor's joke but B'Elanna huffed. "Remind me to show her how change your image matrix to make you look like a Cardassian dung flea."

Kathryn laughed as she took the infant from Seven and held her close. "Do you think a time will come when we can leave her with someone without your bio-suit, Seven?"

"She will adapt." Seven replied as she tried to arrange the bio-suit so Kathryn wouldn't trip if she tried to walk away with their child in her arms.

"You sound awfully sure of that, Seven." B'Elanna said as she placed a hand on her own growing belly.

Tom looked at the cooing little girl and smiled. "Yeah Seven what makes you so sure she'll be willing to give up her security blanket."

"It is simple Mister Paris." Seven stated as Gretchen grabbed hold of her finger. "She is where she belongs, home, with her family."

The End

* * *

Thanks to all of you for reading and a special thanks to those who reviewed. Episode two is coming soon so look for "Betrayed"


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